Final project art ii

Johannes Vermeer’s
Woman Holding a Balance
http://www.nga.gov/feature/vermeer/index.shtm

Artist
Johannes Vermeer
Year
1662–1663
Type
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
42.5 cm × 38 cm (16.7 in × 15 in)
Location
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

By: Verenice Gallegos
Art 102
Final Project

Saturday, November 24, 12

Women Holding a Balance
The website National Gallery Art provides an in-in depth analysis of the
painting Women Holding a Balance by the artist Johannes Vermeer. The in-
depth study was designed and produced by Donna Mann. The website is
divided into seven sections: a moment captured, composition, conservation,
technique, symbols and meaning, artist’s biography, and credits. In the
section a moment captured it gives a description of the painting and setting.
The next section is the composition of the painting in which briefly
explains the spiritual principle, the focus point, formation of a pyramid,
balance, etc. In the section conservation it states when the National Gallery
cleaned the painting and show the painting before the treatment and after
the treatment. In the following section technique, you can view a various of
elements of the painting. Next, is symbols and meaning were you can learn
and view a various aspects of the painting’s symbolism. In the section of
the artist’s biography you can learn more about the life and art of the artist.
The last section credits briefly states who designed, produced, were the
content was adapted from, and bibliographic references.


Moment Captured
In the painting Women Holding a Balance, you can see how the light flows from the window across the wall. Then, the
light illuminates a hand, a sleeve, a face, the painting of the Last Judgement in which is hanged on the wall, the table
visible with gold and pearls, and in the center hangs a balance from the hand. The scene depicts the stillness of the women
and concentration on her task, as the light illuminates the scenery. Vermeer transforms the painting into expressions of
perfect harmony and balance when he uses light, color, and composition in the Women Holding a Balance.

In this image, the In this image, you
balance is visible. The can see a blue
women holds the cloth, some open
balance in her right boxes, some
hand as she looks pearls, and a gold
down at it.Waiting for chain that lie on
it to come to rest. the table.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c.
1664, National Gallery of Art, Widener Collection

Johannes Vermeer, Woman
Holding a Balance, c. 1664, The image of the
National Gallery of Art, Widener women depicts no
Collection
concern of what is
happening around her to
the presence of the
viewer. With stillness
she waits for the balance
to rest at equilibrium.
Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a
Balance, c. 1664, National Gallery of
Art, Widener Collection


Composition
The need to lead a balanced life in the
painting, is often displayed in Vermeer’s
work as a spiritual principle. At the
women’s fingers there are orthogonal
lines that meet precisely at that point.
What reinforces that focus, is the frame Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance (detail),
of the Last Judgement that is behind her. c. 1664, National Gallery of Art, Widener Collection

Johannes Vermeer, Woman
Here you can see Vermeer’s
Holding a Balance, c. 1664, modification of scale and the
National Gallery of Art, shape of objects to achieve the
Widener Collection
desire effect of sufficient space
for the balance. The bottom of
In this painting you can see the the frame is higher on the right
formation of a pyramid. That is side than on the left side, behind
formed by the women’s hand, the women.
the jewelry, and the table cloth.
And exactly at the center of the
painting the balance point of
the scale rests.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding
a Balance, c. 1664, National
Gallery of Art, Widener Collection


Conservation

LEFT: Before treatment. RIGHT: After treatment. Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c.

The painting Women Holding a Balance was cleaned in 1994 by the conservators in National
Gallery. They removed the discolored varnish from the paintings surface. During their work, they
revealed that the painting had been extended by a half inch, in the past. They restored the
painting to it’s original size by removing the added paint. In the painting on left side you can see
the grayish paint that was added in the past to the frame of the Last Judgement. After three
month’s of work the conservators discovered the golden yellow highlights in the frame that were
uncovered.


Technique
The pearls in the painting
were painted in two
The use use of infrared reflectography revealed that
Vermeer changed the position of the balance by layers. The first layer
increasing the the size. The light of the infrared consisted of a thin,
reflectography is used to examine the painting into diffused grayish glaze and
detail. The light penetrates the varnish to reveal the the second layer was
underdrawings and compositional changes that lie followed by a thick stroke
beneath the surface of the painting.
on top to create specular
highlight.

Balance, c. 1664, National Gallery of
Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. Art, Widener Collection

Vermeer used both impastos and thin glazes as he worked effectively to maintain
control over his paintings. He used the best pigments and understood the
characteristics of the color. Under magnification it is visible how he achieved the
effect of soft light and how it was represented in different surfaces.

Balance, c. 1664, National Gallery of Art,
Widener Collection


Symbols & Meaning In the Last Judgement Christ
judges the souls below him
The meaning of the light is to and Saint Michael weights
the souls on the balance. The
denote supernatural events and women’s head blocks the
spiritual enlightenment. scenery were Saint Michael
weights the souls. Above the
women’s head is Christ in
which reinforces the
interpretation that her dull act
is parallel to the weighing of
the souls.

The mirror in
Vermeer’s painting The women’s calm and
symbolizes vanity or peaceful expressions and
self knowledge. the blue robe bring back
into our minds the
images of the Virgin
Mary.

Pearls symbolize vanity
and worldly concerns. It
can also represent The balance is a symbol
purity. of justice. Conveying the
meaning: to judge is to
weigh. There is nothing in
the pans and it almost
seem to be in equilibrium.


Vermeer’s Biography
Johannes Vermeer is an artist who was born in Delft in 1632 and
died in 1675.
In April 1653 he married Catharina Bolnes and had eleven kids
with her.
There is little known about when and where he got his artistic
training and apprenticeship.
His first works were large in scale, mythological and religious
paintings.
At a later time he began to paint genre scene such as landscape
and allegories.
Vermeer has about thirty-five works, but were not well known.


Summary
The purpose of this website is to give you an in-depth
analysis of the painting Women Holding a Balance by the
artist Johannes Vermeer; to get a better understanding of this
piece of art. This website aided my understanding about this
artwork by dividing the main points of the painting into
different sections. One question I still have about this piece
of art is, What era would this painting be part of? It did not
state in the website, although I think it might be from the
Renaissance period because of the use of light, a particular
moment captured, the depiction of symbolism, etc. This
website was very well structured with the different sections
that divided important information about the painting. This
helped me better understand the artwork.


References

http://www.nga.gov/feature/vermeer/index.shtm

http://www.nga.gov/podcasts/


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