Why it matters
A young woman in a red hat turns towards us as if a voice has just caught her attention, her lips parted. This small tronie is painted on a wood panel rather than canvas, which long made its attribution to Vermeer controversial.
Did you know?
- A study for the 2022 exhibition Vermeer's Secrets found that Vermeer first painted a man in a wide-brimmed hat.
- Unusually for Vermeer, the light comes from the right.
- The National Gallery of Art has since confirmed Vermeer's authorship.
Based on the Wikipedia article Girl with a Red Hat (CC BY-SA 4.0).
