During this practical “hands-on” workshop children are introduced to the beautiful art productions of 17th Century Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer.
They will have the opportunity to choose their favorite subjects and and reinterpret his work, according to their own sensitivity, using paint alongside mix-media techniques.
Practical information
Date: Saturday 16 September 2017
Time: 1.30 pm to 4.30 pm
Ages: This workshop is recommended for children from 6 to 13 years old.
Location: Atelier du Square, rue François Bonivard 4, 1201 Geneva. Click here to see map.
Fee for one afternoon: CHF 65.- per child, materials and snack included, for the whole week.
Enrollment: Please download the enrollment sheet here: Vermeer Inscription FRComplete it and scan or take a picture of it and return to [email protected]. Payments are due on signature of the enrollment sheet.
Information: Eurydice Labaki, [email protected], +41 (0) 78 696 12 45
Johannes Vermeer (1632 – 1675)
Vermeer ranks among the most admired of all Dutch artists, alongside Rembrandt. He was born and spent all of his life in the city of Delft. Although his teachers’ are unknown and he had no pupils, he was a respected member of the city’s painters guild and he discussed pictural ideas with fellow painters in Delft.
During his short lifetime, Johannes Vermeer produced a small number of paintings. Art historians estimate their number to about 45 of which 36 are known today. A small circle of patrons in Delft and in The Hague purchased his work.
Vermeer’s father cumulated a few jobs: He was a weaver, an innkeeper and an art dealer. After his father’s death in 1652, Vermeer married the daughter of a wealthy Catholic divorcée and converted to their religion. He fathered eleven children and was able to support his family thanks for the high prices of his paintings. However, as from 1970 he encountered severe financial difficulties due to the French-Dutch wars and the severe downturn of the Dutch economy. He died miserably and suddenly in 1975, leaving his wife and eleven children indebted.
In his early paintings, Vermeer sought inspiration in the works of Anthony van Dyck, Hendrick ter Brugghen and Caravaggio. As his own style matured, he showed interest in naturalistic effects with carefully balanced compositions.
His subjects were generally domestic. Vermeer idealized a domestic world occupied mostly by women. His portraits of women suggest close observation and a sense of sympathy. Indeed, he proved to be a keen observer of everyday life in in Delft and the South of Holland. He was clearly preoccupied with the behavior of light and other optical effects such as sudden recessions and changes of focus. His compositions are mostly invented. The relationships between the subject and its environment us displayed in a formal way which includes the use of colour. Vermeer’s application of paint shows amazing focus, care and technical ability.
