Optics and Sciences
Important Passages from Girl With A Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
“While Catharina was unlocking the studio door... called up to me to leave the windows.” (pg. 41)
This paragraph is one of the earlier displays of Griet's strong visual acuity. Unlike other situations like Griet's separation of vegetables in the beginning of the book or the changes she suggested to Vermeer's paintings near the end, her observation of lighting is not based on opinion or artistic preference. The amount of light in a setting can be quantitatively measured and is a delicate detail that can be easily overlooked, especially by a non-painter. The mere knowledge that cleaning the window would influence the brightness even slightly is impressive. However, on a more scientific level, the eye contains about 125 million rod cells - photoreceptor cells which respond to light and release neurotransmitters in vertebrates. Although the rod cell is sensitive enough to detect a single photon, it is much harder to differentiate between two very similar brightness levels. An odd note in regards to the lighting is regardless if Griet changed the incoming sunlight by cleaning the windows, due to Vermeer’s extended painting times, the seasonal changes and angle of the sun in the sky should also make a notable difference in lighting. Without artificial sources of light, it is almost impossible to achieve a significant consistency in the brightness of a room. Looking at many of Vermeer’s works, he repetitively uses window light coming in from the left and light sources such as candles do not seem to be present.
[Matthew Chan]
“I pressed my lips together, then stepped up to the box, to the end where the lid had been lifted. I bent over and looked in at the square of milky glass fixed inside. There was a faint drawing of something on it.…"Oh!" I stood up so suddenly that the robe dropped from my head to the floor. I stepped back from the box, treading on the cloth.…I swallowed. I was terribly confused, and a little frightened. What was in the box was a trick of the devil, or something Catholic I did not understand. "I saw the painting, sir. Except that the woman wasn't in it, and it was smaller. And things were — switched around." (pg. 57)
This paragraph describes the first time Griet looks through a camera obscura box. Before this moment, she had already heard about such box that Vermeer used to assist painting and she had also been impressed by Vermeer’s mastery painting skills from his painting of Van Ruijven’s wife. To Griet, the box is mysterious and might reveal the magic behind Vermeer’s masterpieces. However, Griet has never had any formal education on physics or science and also for a middle class 17th Century Dutch family where Griet came from, paintings are rarely seen in their daily lives not even to mention the device that can display image inside. As written in the book, Griet “presse[s] [her] lips together, then step[s] up to the box,” which reflects that she is very nervous to use this novel device especially with the presence of his master. When she actually sees the image in the device, she is “terribly confused” and “a little frightened” that she “step[s] back from the box, treading on the [Vermeer’s] cloth.” In fact, although the 17th century is called the golden age for Dutch science and craftworks, inventions and developments happened too quickly that most people could not follow the trend. Instead, people make a living by focusing on their own specialized areas and then trade their products. As a result, people outside the painting industry, like Griet, as expected by Vermeer, are unfamiliar with painting tools. However, as soon as Vermeer realized Griet was able to give him inspirations in painting, he was very suprised and led to the rest of the story.
[Chenlu Han]
“You do not understand... This is a tool. I use it to help me see, so that I am able to make the painting.” (pg. 59)
Here, Vermeer is defending his use of the camera obscura. He allows Griet to look inside and see what the camera obscura does for the room. She retorts with a statement about how about how a painter must use his eyes to see and nothing else. Griet and Vermeer represent two different sides of artistry, namely purism and innovation respectively. Griet sees this tool as a crutch or some kind of cheating device because both her father and brother have only ever had their eyes to make paintings and they always turn out well enough in her mind. She equated art quality to pure skill, which meant that her impression of Vermeer was extremely high. When she finds out that he is “cheating” with the camera obscura, it might have shattered her perception of him, had he not justified his actions. While Vermeer does indeed use a camera obscura for different perspectives, he still paints with and inordinate amount of technical skill and precision. When she sees what is inside the camera obscura, she is taken aback at how much different it is than her own eyesight; the fact that Vermeer now has two different viewpoints he can take to paint as well as he does makes her feel as though her father was not a good enough painter with one.
[Nikhil Patel]
"'The camera obscura helps me to see in a different way,' he explained. 'To see more of what is there.'" (pg. 60)
When Griet arrives to clean the studio, Vermeer introduces her to the camera obscura for first time. They start discussing how camera obscura helps the painting process. According to the text, the camera obscura introduced in this book is “a wooden box about the size of a chest for storing clothes in,” and is “attached to one side, with a round object protruding from it.” (Chevalier 55) Vermeer is acknowledged for drawing precise, spatial configurations and vivid images with accurate colors and shading that make his paintings look much like reality. For him to draw such paintings, he observed objects and people closely through an optical device, called a camera obscura. The concept of the camera obscura was known from at least the 4th century BC, but it was not adapted for use as an artist’s aid until the late 15th century AD, the time of Dutch Golden Age. Most works drawn during this period reflect the traditions of detailed realism inherited from early Netherlandish paintings and use of camera tools were necessary for Dutch artists, including Vermeer.
[Eunsun Choi]
“He borrowed van Leeuwenhoek’s camera obscura again to look at the scene one last time… if it made him paint better, I did not question it.” (pg. 123)
This passage is important because it marks the point at which Griet begins to no longer question Jan Vermeer’s way of seeing through the camera obscura. Like most people, Griet sees things only at face value unlike artists like Vermeer. By using the camera obscura, Vermeer is able to “see more” of what is there. The first time Griet saw and used the camera obscura, she did not understand how the device helped Vermeer to paint. At this point in the novel, Griet still does not know or understand why Vermeer uses the camera obscura; however, she has learned to “admire the scenes the camera paints inside itself” and thought that the colors became more intense when seeing the scene inside the camera. Despite repeatedly using the camera obscura and admitting that the camera allows her to see colors better, Griet still fails to see how the camera helps Vermeer to paint. Regardless, Griet admits to accepting that as long as “it” helped Vermeer to paint better, she like Maria Thins will not question “it”. In addition to showing that Griet is blindly accepting Vermeer’s way of seeing, the passage also portrays Griet’s devotion to helping Vermeer. Although Griet has no actual connection to Vermeer except for the relation of master and servant, Griet constantly tries to help Vermeer advance in his painting career throughout the novel.
[Jimmy Nguyen]
This paragraph is one of the earlier displays of Griet's strong visual acuity. Unlike other situations like Griet's separation of vegetables in the beginning of the book or the changes she suggested to Vermeer's paintings near the end, her observation of lighting is not based on opinion or artistic preference. The amount of light in a setting can be quantitatively measured and is a delicate detail that can be easily overlooked, especially by a non-painter. The mere knowledge that cleaning the window would influence the brightness even slightly is impressive. However, on a more scientific level, the eye contains about 125 million rod cells - photoreceptor cells which respond to light and release neurotransmitters in vertebrates. Although the rod cell is sensitive enough to detect a single photon, it is much harder to differentiate between two very similar brightness levels. An odd note in regards to the lighting is regardless if Griet changed the incoming sunlight by cleaning the windows, due to Vermeer’s extended painting times, the seasonal changes and angle of the sun in the sky should also make a notable difference in lighting. Without artificial sources of light, it is almost impossible to achieve a significant consistency in the brightness of a room. Looking at many of Vermeer’s works, he repetitively uses window light coming in from the left and light sources such as candles do not seem to be present.
[Matthew Chan]
“I pressed my lips together, then stepped up to the box, to the end where the lid had been lifted. I bent over and looked in at the square of milky glass fixed inside. There was a faint drawing of something on it.…"Oh!" I stood up so suddenly that the robe dropped from my head to the floor. I stepped back from the box, treading on the cloth.…I swallowed. I was terribly confused, and a little frightened. What was in the box was a trick of the devil, or something Catholic I did not understand. "I saw the painting, sir. Except that the woman wasn't in it, and it was smaller. And things were — switched around." (pg. 57)
This paragraph describes the first time Griet looks through a camera obscura box. Before this moment, she had already heard about such box that Vermeer used to assist painting and she had also been impressed by Vermeer’s mastery painting skills from his painting of Van Ruijven’s wife. To Griet, the box is mysterious and might reveal the magic behind Vermeer’s masterpieces. However, Griet has never had any formal education on physics or science and also for a middle class 17th Century Dutch family where Griet came from, paintings are rarely seen in their daily lives not even to mention the device that can display image inside. As written in the book, Griet “presse[s] [her] lips together, then step[s] up to the box,” which reflects that she is very nervous to use this novel device especially with the presence of his master. When she actually sees the image in the device, she is “terribly confused” and “a little frightened” that she “step[s] back from the box, treading on the [Vermeer’s] cloth.” In fact, although the 17th century is called the golden age for Dutch science and craftworks, inventions and developments happened too quickly that most people could not follow the trend. Instead, people make a living by focusing on their own specialized areas and then trade their products. As a result, people outside the painting industry, like Griet, as expected by Vermeer, are unfamiliar with painting tools. However, as soon as Vermeer realized Griet was able to give him inspirations in painting, he was very suprised and led to the rest of the story.
[Chenlu Han]
“You do not understand... This is a tool. I use it to help me see, so that I am able to make the painting.” (pg. 59)
Here, Vermeer is defending his use of the camera obscura. He allows Griet to look inside and see what the camera obscura does for the room. She retorts with a statement about how about how a painter must use his eyes to see and nothing else. Griet and Vermeer represent two different sides of artistry, namely purism and innovation respectively. Griet sees this tool as a crutch or some kind of cheating device because both her father and brother have only ever had their eyes to make paintings and they always turn out well enough in her mind. She equated art quality to pure skill, which meant that her impression of Vermeer was extremely high. When she finds out that he is “cheating” with the camera obscura, it might have shattered her perception of him, had he not justified his actions. While Vermeer does indeed use a camera obscura for different perspectives, he still paints with and inordinate amount of technical skill and precision. When she sees what is inside the camera obscura, she is taken aback at how much different it is than her own eyesight; the fact that Vermeer now has two different viewpoints he can take to paint as well as he does makes her feel as though her father was not a good enough painter with one.
[Nikhil Patel]
"'The camera obscura helps me to see in a different way,' he explained. 'To see more of what is there.'" (pg. 60)
When Griet arrives to clean the studio, Vermeer introduces her to the camera obscura for first time. They start discussing how camera obscura helps the painting process. According to the text, the camera obscura introduced in this book is “a wooden box about the size of a chest for storing clothes in,” and is “attached to one side, with a round object protruding from it.” (Chevalier 55) Vermeer is acknowledged for drawing precise, spatial configurations and vivid images with accurate colors and shading that make his paintings look much like reality. For him to draw such paintings, he observed objects and people closely through an optical device, called a camera obscura. The concept of the camera obscura was known from at least the 4th century BC, but it was not adapted for use as an artist’s aid until the late 15th century AD, the time of Dutch Golden Age. Most works drawn during this period reflect the traditions of detailed realism inherited from early Netherlandish paintings and use of camera tools were necessary for Dutch artists, including Vermeer.
[Eunsun Choi]
“He borrowed van Leeuwenhoek’s camera obscura again to look at the scene one last time… if it made him paint better, I did not question it.” (pg. 123)
This passage is important because it marks the point at which Griet begins to no longer question Jan Vermeer’s way of seeing through the camera obscura. Like most people, Griet sees things only at face value unlike artists like Vermeer. By using the camera obscura, Vermeer is able to “see more” of what is there. The first time Griet saw and used the camera obscura, she did not understand how the device helped Vermeer to paint. At this point in the novel, Griet still does not know or understand why Vermeer uses the camera obscura; however, she has learned to “admire the scenes the camera paints inside itself” and thought that the colors became more intense when seeing the scene inside the camera. Despite repeatedly using the camera obscura and admitting that the camera allows her to see colors better, Griet still fails to see how the camera helps Vermeer to paint. Regardless, Griet admits to accepting that as long as “it” helped Vermeer to paint better, she like Maria Thins will not question “it”. In addition to showing that Griet is blindly accepting Vermeer’s way of seeing, the passage also portrays Griet’s devotion to helping Vermeer. Although Griet has no actual connection to Vermeer except for the relation of master and servant, Griet constantly tries to help Vermeer advance in his painting career throughout the novel.
[Jimmy Nguyen]
1. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Vermeer
2. Madder paint
3. Camera obscura
4. Map globe
5. Apothecary
6. Woman with a Water Jug by Vermeer
7. Book cover, Girl with a Pearl Earring
2. Madder paint
3. Camera obscura
4. Map globe
5. Apothecary
6. Woman with a Water Jug by Vermeer
7. Book cover, Girl with a Pearl Earring