Vermeer - The Rijksmuseum's major exhibition catalogue

Both authors work at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Pieter Roelofs is Head of Paintings and Sculpture, and Gregor J. M. Weber is Head of the Department of Fine Arts.

• Foreword by Taco Dibbits, general director, Rijksmuseum Section I: Essays 1. Vermeer - BiographyAn introduction to Vermeer's life and work 2. Vermeer - His HouseAlthough little is known about Vermeer as a personality, an investigation into his direct environment reveals much more. Paying a visit to Oude Langendijk in Delft, this essay examines Vermeer's family members, household life and personal possessions. 3. Vermeer's Invented WorldVermeer's paintings are almost exclusively interiors, imbued with a momentary stillness in time which nevertheless has been carefully constructed and orchestrated to direct the observer's gaze. This creation of intimacy is the key theme of the exhibition. Section II: The PaintingsIncludes every painting by Vermeer, grouped in 13 thematic sections, each written by a curatorial authority. Each theme includes 2–4 works: Delft – Coming HomePaintings: View of the Delft, The Little Street Inside – Still-life Figures, Safe WorldPaintings: A Maid Asleep, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, The Milkmaid Very Close – IntrovertPaintings: Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, The Lacemaker SecludedPaintings: The Music Lesson, The Concert, The Love Letter Windows – The Outside World InsidePaintings: Officer and Laughing Girl, Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid, Woman with a Lute, Young Woman with a Water Pitcher Letters – The World Outside InsidePaintings: Mistress and Maid, A Lady Writing Fashionable IntrudersPaintings: The Glass of Wine, The Girl with a Wine Glass, Girl Interrupted in her Music Attraction/Across the BorderPaintings: Girl with a Red Hat, Girl with Flute, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Study of a Young Woman Playing Music for.../Waiting for the (music-)partnerPaintings: A Lady Standing at a Virginal, A Lady Seated at a Virginal, The Guitar Player, A Young Woman Seated at the Virginals The Whole World InsidePaintings: The Geographer, The Astronomer World of thoughts/Inner Reflections of Vanity and FaithPaintings: Woman with a Pearl Necklace, Woman Holding a Balance, Allegory of Catholic Faith Early Ambitions/Try OutsPaintings: Saint Praxedis, Christ in the House of Martha and Mary, Diana and her Companions, The Procuress Late Ambition/Legate, TestimonyPaintings: The Art of Painting

'Proust was once so excited to see a Vermeer show that he collapsed … I got chest pains merely leafing through the catalogue' - Jonathan Jones, Guardian