Last January, I happened upon an article in Hyperallergic, “Submit Your Wildest Version of ‘Girl With a Pearl Earring’,” subtitle: “Your artwork could be shown at the painting’s home in the Netherlands while the original travels for an exhibition.” Even though I didn’t have much time to meet the January 15th deadline, I decided to give it a whirl.
As the article explained:
Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” (1665), housed at the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, Netherlands, is one of the most recognizable works of Western art history. Now, as the painting takes a vacation to Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum for the largest Vermeer exhibition to date this spring, you can submit your own unique interpretation of the iconic three-quarters angled stare for potential display in its place.
https://hyperallergic.com/793467/submit-your-wildest-version-of-girl-with-a-pearl-earring/
Artists worldwide were encouraged to create something “beyond their wildest dreams” and post it on their Instagram pages, tagging the Mauritshuis museum, and using the hashtag #mygirlwithapearl to be considered. They had no idea that over 5,000 artists would submit to the open call! Of the 5K, they chose 170 works to appear in the Vermeer room’s digital frame. Unfortunately my painting did not make it – but it will be displayed on the Mauritshuis museum’s website and Instagram page while the exhibition runs from February 6th through June 4th, 2023.
It was great fun to create my humorous painting, titled “Pearl With a Girl Earring” and I’m honored to be a part of this worldwide project. There have been so many interesting and imaginative works created as a result of this open call, and you can see them all on IG by searching the hashtag #mygirlwithapearl (see some examples pictured below).
Lorie Caval 