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ABSTRACT Title of Dissertation: VERMEER IN DIALOGUE: FROM APPROPRIATION TO RESPONSE Marguerite Anne Glass, Doctor of Philosophy, 2003 Dissertation directed by: Associate Professor Mary Corbin Sies Department of American Studies The intrinsic value of art rests in the response it conjures in its audience and the information this response can convey about the culture in which it resides. The paintings of the 17th century Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer are proving particularly relevant to our contemporary culture. The scholarly discourse on Vermeer and his paintings, the exhibition of his works, their reproduction in diverse media, and their appropriation by artists, novelists, and filmmakers have created dialogues on Vermeer that promote understanding of his meaning today. Surrounding Vermeer with the various dialogues that have surfaced in culture provides a way of understanding how meaning has been ascribed to this artist and just what this meaning is. The degree of attention afforded to Vermeer through the exhibition forum has shifted his paintings into the full view of a broad international audience, made the artist and his paintings celebrities, and established Vermeer’s aesthetic as a cultural emblem of beauty open to public response and interpretation. This thesis is argued within the context of five museum exhibitions related to Vermeer that took place between 1995- 2003 and through an in-depth discussion of the appropriation of his paintings by other artists, writers, filmmakers and their critics. Critical methods from art history, visual culture studies, film studies, consumer culture studies, anthropology, and ethnography are employed to support this thesis Appropriation is an important theme in our contemporary culture; yet, there is also an historical context through which it has evolved. Artists have engaged in appropriation throughout art history and many traditional motivations for appropriation remain presently relevant. Methods of reproduction have tremendously affected the evolution of painting since the development of the print in the 15th century and this has had impact on art appropriation. Technological developments in reproduction methods since the 19th century have accelerated the appropriation of paintings in diverse media. The reproduction of Vermeer’s paintings since the 19th century and especially through the museum exhibition and its media response in recent history have made his images well- known and encouraged their use as a way of conceptualizing and contextualizing ideas of refinement, perfection, and beauty. VERMEER IN DIALOGUE: FROM APPROPRIATION TO RESPONSE by Marguerite Anne Glass Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2003 Advisory Committee: Dr. Mary Corbin Sies, Chair Professor John Caughey Professor J. Robert Dorfman Dr. Myron Lounsbury Professor Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. ©Copyright by Marguerite Anne Glass 2003 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A number of individuals have offered their support during the research and writing of this dissertation. Among these I would particularly like to thank the following. My dissertation advisor, Dr. Mary Corbin Sies has offered continuous encouragement and interest in my ideas throughout this long process. It was during her Material Culture Studies seminar in 1998 that I began seriously probing issues related to the appropriation of art in our culture and this project has come into fruition with her guidance and commitment to my work. I was fortunate to have begun this journey with Dr. Myron Lounsbury whose mastery in drawing connections between seemingly disparate pieces of information and in promoting a stimulating classroom environment have influenced me beyond measure. I have also benefited from my conversations with Dr. John Caughey, Chair of American Studies over the years and have especially appreciated his insights on ethnography. The Department of American Studies, University of Maryland has provided an intellectually rigorous environment in which my ideas have evolved over the last seven years. The department’s administrative assistant, Ms. Valerie Brown has also offered important assistance at numerous critical junctures. This dissertation received support from a dedicated and insightful advisory committee. In addition to Mary Sies, Myron Lounsbury, and John Caughey, I am fortunate to have also had on my committee Dr. J. Robert Dorfman of the Department of Physics and Dr. Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. of the Department of Art History and Archeology. As a scholar in 17th century Dutch art and a published authority on Johannes Vermeer, Dr. Wheelock served an important role and offered a unique point of continuity within the context of my own academic development, which is further ii acknowledged within the text of this dissertation. As a lifelong student of Dutch art and a Vermeer expert in his own right, Dr. Dorfman brought an equally unique and important perspective to my committee. I also wish to express my appreciation to Dr. Barbara Carson and Dr. Sally Promey who served as early members of my committee during the dissertation proposal stage and whose insights helped shape the finished product. I have received uncommon support from many individuals and departments with whom I work at Gallaudet University. In particular, I would like to acknowledge Dr. William Moses, former Chair of the Art Department and Dr. Jane Dillehay, former Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Technology. I thank my colleagues in the Art Department and Dr. Karen Kimmel, Associate Dean, CLAST. Mr. Scott Carollo offered his expertise in scanning and formatting the images that appear throughout this text. The Gallaudet Research Institute also provided financial support through a series of Small Research Grants and I wish to thank Dr. Thomas Allen, Dr. Michael Karchmer, Dr. Leonard Kelly, and Ms. Sally Dunn for their assistance. I have had the pleasure of working with more Gallaudet students than I can possibly number and have benefited greatly in my work through my interactions with them. Finally, I owe a tremendous debt to Ms. Shirley Benjamin, the Administrative Assistant to the Art Department, who in so many ways helped me keep my momentum to the very end. This project would not have been possible without the assistance of the contemporary artists with whom I have worked over the past several years and whose art works they each graciously allowed me to reproduce in this manuscript. My sincere thanks to George Deem and his assistant Ronald Vance, Terri Priest, Mary Waters, Christina Linaris-Cordiou and her husband Robert Nottrot. iii Finally, I wish to acknowledge my family, my mother Nancy Glass, and my father Robert Glass, now deceased. Most importantly, I wish to thank my children Samuel Englehart and Meredith Englehart who have grown into fine young beings amidst the writing of these pages. It is to them that my dissertation is dedicated. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures……………………………………………………………………… iv Chapter 1: Introduction .………………………………………………………... 1 Chapter 2: Appropriation ……………………………………………………… 21 Introduction ..………………………………………………………………. 21 What art is being appropriated? …………………………………………… 25 Why is it being appropriated? ……………………………………………... 28 What does it all mean? …………………………………………………….. 33 Increased Access 34 Private Sites of Meaning 36 Consumer Culture Theory 42 Effects and Conclusions 48 Chapter 3: Johannes Vermeer: Life and Afterlife ……………………………... 54 Introduction ………………………………………………………………... 54 Johannes Vermeer …………………………………………………………. 60 Arthur Wheelock and Johannes Vermeer, Washington, D.C. 67 Vermeer and The Delft School, New York 97 Art & Home: Dutch Interiors in the Age of Rembrandt, Denver 103 Vermeer: Dutch Painting of Domestic Interiors, Madrid 108 Conclusions ……………………………………………………………….. 112 Chapter 4: Appropriation as Response …………………………………………117 Introduction ………………………………………………………………... 117 Dialogues with Vermeer…………………………………………………… 124 Christina Linaris-Coridou 127 Mary Waters 136 George Deem 143 Terri Priest 164 Conclusions………………………………………………………………… 178 Chapter 5: Response as Dialogue ……………………………………………... 187 Introduction………………………………………………………………… 187 Art and Storytelling…………………………………………………………189 The Music Lesson by Katharine Weber 196 Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland 203 Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier 211 The Forger by Paul Watkins 227 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………… 237 v Chapter 6: Afterlife as Response………………………………………………. 246 Introduction………………………………………………………………… 246 Cinematic Dialogues with Vermeer………………………………………... 248 Chapter 7: Conclusion ……………………………………………………….... 266 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………….. 284 vi LIST OF FIGURES 1. Outside cover of the Musée du Louvre catalogue purchased by Marguerite Glass during her family’s trip to Europe in August, 1971. 10 2. Illustration and text from Owen by Kevin Henkes, 1993. 23 3. Recruitment poster for the Sisters of Mercy of America, an order of the Roman Catholic Church, 2000. 26 4. Pulte Master Builder advertisement, 1998. 27 5. Johannes Vermeer. The Art of Painting, c. 1666. 63 6. Johannes Vermeer. Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid, ca. 1670-71. 66 7. Johannes Vermeer, The Girl with the Red Hat, ca. 1665-6. 70 8. Johannes Vermeer, View of Delft, ca. 1660-61. 74 9. Johannes Vermeer, The Little Street, ca. 1660-61. 75 10. Johannes Vermeer, Young Woman with a Water Jug, ca. 1663-65. 77 11. Johannes Vermeer, Girl