Vermeer exhibit opens in Rijksmuseum today; Girl with Pearl Earring there till March 30

Vermeer, the Rijksmuseum’s first retrospective exhibition on Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675), opens today. The exhibit runs until June 4, but Girl with the Pearl Earring will only form part of it until March 30th.

Girl with the Pearl Earring is one of Vermeer’s most famous works. It’ll only be part of the Rijksmuseum exhibition for seven weeks because the Mauritshuis in The Hague, which loaned it to the Amsterdam museum for the exhibit, wants it back before the tourist season starts.

“Without Girl with the Pearl Earring, we would disappoint many visitors, which means a financial loss,” Mauritshuis director Martine Gosselink said to NU.nl. He stressed that the early return of the artwork was an explicit part of the loan from the start.

The Vermeer exhibit is set to be a big one, consisting of 28 paintings loaned from 14 museums and private collections from seven countries. The Rijksmuseum called it “unprecedented” to have so many Vermeers in one place at one time. According to the Rijksmuseum, the exhibit sold over 200,000 tickets before its opening.

“Vermeer did not produce many paintings. Their impact, however, is unforgettable,” said Rijksmuseum director Taco Dibbits. “In a world making constant demands upon us, the calm and intimacy of his work bring time to a standstill.”