Rijksmuseum extends Vermeer exhibition opening hours due to enormous interest

The Rijksmuseum is extending the opening hours for the Vermeer exhibition there because there is a great deal of enthusiasm for the showcase. A month before the opening, more than 100,000 tickets were booked for the exhibition, where 28 paintings by the 17th-century master will be shown. According to the museum, there has never been so much interest in advance of an exhibition’s opening.

The exhibition will begin on February 10 and will continue to June 4. On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays the closing time will be at 10 p.m., ad opposed to 6 p.m. on other days. The Rijksmuseum is actually limiting ticket sales and access to the exhibit to "give visitors the most pleasant experience possible.” With the extended opening hours, the museum still wants to "give as many people as possible the opportunity to see Vermeer.”

The exhibition will include the painting Girl with a flute, which has recently attracted attention. An investigation carried out by the National Gallery in Washington D.C. reported that the painting was not actually the work of Vermeer himself, but that of someone close to him, such as a student.

However, the Rijksmuseum, which itself also conducted extensive research into the artist's life and work, said their study conclusively determined that the work was painted by Vermeer.

Girl with a Flute is owned by the National Gallery. The museum is lending it and three other Vermeers for the exhibition in Amsterdam. Also on display are Vermeer pieces from the Louvre in Paris, the Frick Collection, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The Mauritshuis is also lending Girl with a Pearl Earring, which was recently targeted by climate activists at the end of October. The museum in The Hague has also provided the piece, View of Delft.