Those of you who keep up with the wild rumblings and crazy shenanigans of the art world already know about the once-in-a-generation art exhibition opening in a few short weeks in Amsterdam. For those of you who don’t know, buckle up because this revelation just might knock your art historical socks off!
Simply titled “Vermeer,” the Rijksmuseum is hosting the largest exhibition of Johannes Vermeer’s work ever. EVER! This exhibition will feature 28 of Vermeer’s known works including paintings that are typically prohibited from traveling and yes, that includes Girl with a Pearl Earring (1665)!
One of the coolest byproducts to come out of the planning of this exhibition is a super fun project organized by the Mauritshuis, the home of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting, located in The Hague in the Netherlands. Because they have graciously allowed the iconic Vermeer painting to travel, the result will be a blank space on their gallery wall for about five months. Knowing how beloved the painting is around the world, the staff at the Mauritshuis has arranged a contest in which anyone can submit their unique, crazy version or reinterpretation of the Girl with a Pearl Earring painting and if chosen, it will be displayed on a digital screen in the gallery in place of the original painting.
Here are a few of the submissions that are up for consideration…
A few of you who follow the blog have reached out to me directly and asked if I did something like this in the past and the answer is… YES! Back when I was creating my art historical parodies (#CovidClassics), I recreated Girl with a Pearl Earring as “Girl with a Squirrel Earring.” Take a look…
If you would like to follow along with this project and see all the extremely creative ways in which folks reimagine this painting, you can do so on Instagram by following the Mauritshuis (@mauritshuis_museum) and the project itself (@mygirlwithapearl).
If you would like to submit your own version of Girl with a Pearl Earring, please visit this link for more details…
https://www.mauritshuis.nl/en/what-s-on/mauritshuis-at-home/mygirlwithapearl/
For more on the popularity of this project, check out this link…
For more info on the epic Vermeer exhibition, please visit the following link…
The Wandering Art Historian 
WINNER must be Wandering Art Historian Adrienne Girl with the Squirrel Earring = covid classic!!!
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LOL! Cindy, you are my biggest cheerleader – THANK YOU!
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