It’s a compelling case, backed up by the evidence of the paintings. But isn’t there a risk that by situating Vermeer firmly in the context of his contemporaries, his genius will be diminished? After all, time and again, the Louvre’s exhibition demonstrates that the great innovator within Dutch genre painting was Ter Borch, who, in his day, was far more famous than Vermeer. So how come Vermeer, not Ter Borch, is now a household name?
Ducos thinks for a moment. “Vermeer has such a distinct tone,” he replies, “and a psychology that is absent from the other paintings. Most Dutch genre paintings are functional: they describe. The art of describing – that’s very Dutch. Vermeer is Dutch, of course. But, at the same time, he’s universal. In a way, he’s like a Chinese man wandering in Europe: he could be from anywhere, which isn’t the case with Ter Borch, who has a much more local flavour.”
Ducos gestures towards The Milkmaid, which Vermeer painted when he was only about 25 years old. “The Louvre has the source for this painting,” he says, referring to Dou’s Kitchen Maid of c1645-53, a tour de force of detailed realism, which also depicts a female servant pouring liquid into a bowl – in this case positioned beside a bunch of suggestive carrots.
“Obviously, the two compositions are much alike,” Ducos continues. “But I think Vermeer was unnerved by what Dou had done, because he thought it was anecdotal, even a bit ludicrous. So, he reacted against Dou’s painting and simplified it, peeled away all the accessories, all the unnecessary impedimenta. In the Dou, the face of the lady and the carrots are given the same importance. But in The Milkmaid, there is hierarchy, and everything is meaningful.”
How, then, would Ducos describe the nature of Vermeer’s genius? “Vermeer’s art is an art of transformation,” he replies. “In The Milkmaid, he transformed Dou, by getting back to the essential, and turning a humble servant into a queen. Once you’ve deciphered Dou’s Kitchen Maid, it’s done. With Vermeer, there is more psychological complexity, more to dwell on. You can spend your life looking at The Milkmaid.”
