The Girl with the Pearl Earring could represent Magdalene van Ruijven, the daughter of Johannes Vermeer’s main patrons. At least this is the hypothesis put forward by the British art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon in his recently published work Vermeer: A Life Lost and Found. The book offers a new reading of the painter’s work, where symbolism and spirituality occupy a central place.
Drawing on archival research carried out in Delft and Rotterdam, as well as studies of Vermeer, the author traces the artist’s links with Pieter van Ruijven and Maria de Knuijt, in order to support his argument about the identity of the model.
The artist worked almost exclusively for this couple of patrons: almost half of his production was purchased or commissioned by them. A study published in 2023 by researchers Piet Bakker and Judith Noorman (University of Amsterdam) showed that Maria de Knuijt, and not her husband, was the real sponsor of Vermeer’s works, which suggests a determining influence on his career.
The couple belonged to a radical Protestant branch, the Remonstrants (or Arminians). Maria de Knuijt was a member of the collegial movement, marked by a pacifist and democratic ideal. Vermeer, having himself received an Arminian education, shared their religious convictions and moved in the same spiritual and intellectual circles.
Andrew Graham-Dixon suggests that The Girl with the Pearl Earring could represent Mary Magdalene, biblical figure of penance and redemption. According to him, the young woman’s raised gaze and the sobriety of her clothing would support this symbolic reading. At the time of the painting’s supposed creation, around 1665, the young Magdalena van Ruijven, then aged twelve, was committing to the Christian faith when she was confirmed in 1667.
This hypothesis is not new, however, as art historian Ruth Millington points out: “This theory has been circulating for some time. » She adds: “The true charm of painting lies in the mystery of its muse. It is not meant to be a literal portrait of an identifiable model, but an imagined figure. Art is rarely as biographical as the public assumes. »
According to Ruth Millington, The Girl with the Pearl Earring would be a tronie – a type of idealized facial study, often accompanied by a marked expression or exotic elements – rather than an individual portrait. This is also the consensus of the scientific community. Other researchers suggest that it could be Vermeer’s daughter, Maria.
