Analyzing the Girl with a Pearl Earring Her bright, red lips parted as if she is taken by surprise, her head tilted over her shoulder looking on towards the painter as if she had her photo taken unsuspectingly. The Girl with a Pearl Earring is as mysterious as it is beautiful. Analyzing artwork has been difficult but with the facts in front of us, knowledge of the artist himself, analysis of the piece, our own interpretations, and judgment may help us solve the mysterious girl in the beautiful oil painting that was selected for this essay; Girl with a Pearl Earring. What do we see when we look at her? Her lips parted as if she is caught by surprise; eyes focused on the painter as her head leans over her shoulder, catching our gaze in an instant. …show more content…
The Girl with a Pearl Earring is a tronie, a Dutch word that means the ‘head’ portrait that was not commissioned for specific people. The rich blues, warm and light yellows, the tinted pearl, the reds and browns make this painting come to life with his unique techniques. The broad-brushstrokes on the turban of the ‘Girl’ was made with blue known as ultramarine, a pigment the was rather expensive in this era; made with crushed lapis lazuli and imported from Afghanistan. Despite his finical difficulties of his lifetime he still managed to use this pigments in his pieces (Essential.) The Girl is organized in with the colors Vermeer had used, her turban, the nose, the infamous pearl earring, her garments, and the environment that the girl is painted in. Like other Dutch artists during Vermeer’s lifetime there was an exotic taste that was presented by the unusual yellow and blue turban of the Girl in the painting. There are no sources of the turban that the Girl wears found in other painters works and during the time. “Critics now believe that Vermeer drew his inspiration from art rather than life, specifically from Michael Sweerts’ A Boy Wearing a Turban and Holding a Nosegay…” (Essential.) The most captivating piece of this artwork is the Girls pearl earring that is lost in the space of shadows. The form of the earring reflects light that is soft like the beams of light on the Girls face and clothes. The pearl earring has weight to it, and in society it demonstrates wealth at the time. Nonetheless, most critics agree that the earring on the girl was either a false tin that was exaggerated to resemble a real pearl earring. Others believe that it is a real pearl, but the form of its weight and volume look were painted to exaggerate its purpose (Essential.) The Girl has a deep yellow