From Library Journal
This rich and rewarding volume accompanies a wide-ranging exhibition, which opened to deserved acclaim at New York's Metropolitan Museum and is currently on view at the National Gallery in London. Vermeer's popularity has continued to soar in recent years, and this well-deserved recognition is validated in this catalog, which brings 16 of his existing canvases together with contextual information that explains the paintings as more than works of an isolated genius. The book reveals the riches of the 17th-century Dutch town itself, a center for patrons, art dealers, and artists creating both decorative and fine arts. The reader enjoys a neighborhood view of the offerings from the studios of De Hooch, van der Ast, Bramer, van Vleit, and Steen. The excellent essays by Liedtke and his fellow curators at the Met and the National Gallery evoke the artistic life of Delft from 1200 to 1700 and the rich history of the town's influence on Dutch culture. Whether they are looking for an overview of the period in Europe or for detailed information on an individual canvas, library users will find this volume helpful. Destined to become a standard reference, this is among the best museum publications of the last decade. Recommended for all libraries. Doug McClemont, New York Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
This splendid volume, and the exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that it accompanied, asks a historically significant question: Was there a seventeenth-century Delft School? Vermeer is beloved for his intimate domestic interiors either way, but the works of artists affectionately referred to as "little masters," artists who never approached Vermeer's level, benefit from being viewed in this context. As the somewhat scholarly but certainly accessible text and numerous beautiful color reproductions of paintings, drawings, and decorative pieces attest, many of these works are extraordinary for the insights they provide into the culture of Delft and the early free market for art. Approximately half of Vermeer's known works, some of which haven't traveled in more than a century, are represented and discussed, as are works by his teacher, Carel Fabritius, making this volume as pleasurable as it is informative. Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
Seventeenth-century Delft has traditionally been viewed as a quaint town whose artists painted scenes of domestic life. This important book revises that image, showing that the small but vibrant Dutch city produced fine examples of all the major arts—including luxury goods and sophisticated paintings for the court at The Hague and for patrician collectors in Delft itself. The book traces the history and culture of Delft from the 1200s through the lifetime of the city's most renowned painter, Johannes Vermeer. The authors discuss at length some ninety major paintings (seventeen by Vermeer), forty drawings, and a choice selection of decorative arts, all of which are reproduced in full color. Among the paintings are state portraits, history pictures, still lifes, views of palaces and church interiors, illusionistic murals, and refined genre pictures by Vermeer and Pieter de Hooch. The rich works on paper encompass exquisite drawings by Delft artists and sketches of the town by visiting artists. Included in the decorative arts are tapestries, bronze statuary, silver, Delftware, and glass. The volume concludes with an essay that takes the reader on a walk through seventeenth-century Delft. It is accompanied by maps of the city's neighborhoods that indicate major monuments and the homes of patrons, art dealers, and painters.


From the Publisher
This handsome book serves as the catalogue for an exhibition to be held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 5 March to 27 May 2001 and at the National Gallery, London, from 20 June to 26 September 2001.

FROM OUR EDITORS

Known primarily as the home of Johannes Vermeer and other skilled painters, the small Dutch town of Delft is revealed to have been a thriving center for arts of all kinds in this beautiful book. Vermeer and the Delft School reproduces the wonderful paintings of renowned Dutch artists such as Vermeer and De Hooch but also includes the city's lesser-known artistic products, such as exquisite tapestries, silver, and glass. Extensive essays on the history and culture of Delft provide context for the artworks, making this the definitive book on the Delft School.

ANNOTATION

This handsome book serves as the catalogue for an exhibition to be held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 5 March to 27 May 2001 and at the National Gallery, London, from 20 June to 26 September 2001.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Seventeenth-century Delft has traditionally been viewed as a quaint town whose artists painted scenes of domestic life. This important book revises that image, showing that the small but vibrant Dutch city produced fine examples of all the major arts-including luxury goods and sophisticated paintings for the court at The Hague and for patrician collectors in Delft itself.

The book traces the history and culture of Delft from the 1200s through the lifetime of the city's most renowned painter, Johannes Vermeer. The authors discuss at length some ninety major paintings (seventeen by Vermeer), forty drawings, and a choice selection of decorative arts, all of which are reproduced in full color. Among the paintings are state portraits, history pictures, still lifes, views of palaces and church interiors, illusionistic murals, and refined genre pictures by Vermeer and Pieter de Hooch. The rich works on paper encompass exquisite drawings by Delft artists and sketches of the town by visiting artists. Included in the decorative arts are tapestries, bronze statuary, silver, Delftware, and glass. The volume concludes with an essay that takes the reader on a walk through seventeenth-century Delft. It is accompanied by maps of the city's neighborhoods that indicate major monuments and the homes of patrons, art dealers, and painters.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal