Jan Vermeer and His Oil Paintings

Vermeer was born in October 31, 1632, his father was an artist, and making living by making models, his father was a textile worker, who own a small hotel, did some artistic job sometimes. 

From some ancient documents, he was found not rich, now days only a very small number of Jan Vermeer paintings was identified, only 35 pieces. His output is so limited, even we double his works, the 35 pieces in 20 years is a very small number. Even we allow some more times for his business as an art dealer, he is still an slow action painter.

Lack of historical materials and records make it very difficult for us to get a clear profile of Jan Vermeer. Perhaps it is why those critics didn't even noticed him in 18th century. 

In 1650, Carel Fabritius lived in the same city, who was Rambrant pupil. Some of Vermeer's paintings has similarity with Carel, does it mean that Carel was his tutor ?

Some of his paintings, dated from 1653-1656, clearly shows that he was interested in Italian oil paintings, but nothing can prove that Vermeer visited Italian.

Out of doubt, he was also attracted by Caravaggio painting style.

Vermeer on the Net

• Tom van Halteran has made a really excellent and comprehensive site about all aspects of the painter. Highly recommended!
• A book review of Vermeer Studies, edited by Ivan Gaskell and Michiel Jonker. This long-awaited volume contains a large selection of the papers that were delivered at a symposia in Washington, D.C., in 1995 and The Hague in 1996 in connection with the Vermeer exhibition held at the National Gallery of Art and the Mauritshuis respectively.
• There is a fine scholarly Vermeer page (in French) written by Ren¨¦ Berger and his colleagues at EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland.
• Jan Vermeer Online
  Jan Vermeer [Dutch Baroque Era Painter, 1632-1675] Guide to pictures of works by Jan Vermeer in art museum sites and image archives worldwide.
• Jan Vermeer Vermeer was a Master in the Delft painters' guild from 1653, was elected Dean (hoofdman) in 1662-3 and 1670-71, and was highly regarded in his lifetime, ...
  www.artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html
• Vermeer, Jan
  1632 - 1675. Biographie et oeuvres du grand peintre hollandais.
  perso.orange.fr/yann.franqueville/vermeer.htm