A few weeks ago I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see their current exhibition entitled In Praise of Painting: Dutch Masterpieces at the Met. Although I do not particularly know much about 17th century Dutch culture, I was excited to see the works of renowned Dutch painters such as Rembrandt and Johannes Vermeer and their depictions of realism. I was interested to see how the paintings of these famous artists illustrated the culture and social relationships present during that time in history and how they saw the world through their perspective.  

The exhibit encompassed several rooms with each wall focusing on a particular theme in Dutch history and culture. One wall focused on the lives of women, ranging from paintings of maids to illustrating the lives of upper class women in their household. Another part of the exhibit focused on the domestic lives of the Dutch, depicting scenes of daily household activities and social interactions presented within the home. A different room showcased paintings that highlighted religion and the role that it played within Dutch society.   

One image that stood out to me was a painting by Johannes Vermeer, entitled Woman with a Water Pitcher. It illustrated a young woman in a bright blue dress holding a water pitcher while gazing out of the window with a small smile on her face. I was immediately intrigued by the simplicity of the scene but at the same time I had many questions. Who was this woman and what role does she place in Dutch society? Is she searching for somebody outside or longing to go out herself? The details in the background of the painting reveal that this woman belongs to the upper class. On the table beside her is a colorful, textured rug on top of which appears to be a gold jewelry box. On the wall behind her hangs what appears to be a map. All these different objects are not items that would have been found in a common household which indicates that the woman must have some wealth. I wonder if she is happy in her domestic environment or if she longs for more in the outside world.   

All the different paintings in the exhibit showed different aspects of Dutch life and culture during the 17th century. They showed me how artists of that era focused on realism and how  they portrayed  the world as they saw it. It was interesting to see the different perspectives of various artists and learn about some of the masterpieces of classical art.