The girl with the pearl earring goes on a trip and receives fun versions created by the public instead

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Museum that houses in its collection the famous painting by Vermeer, lends it for a large retrospective exhibition of the artist and invites the public to send versions of the work to take its place

The painting girl with pearl earring, considered the masterpiece of baroque painter Johannes Vermeer, is the most sought-after work and a source of pride for the collection of the Mauritshuis museum in the Netherlands. Since 2014, the painting has been prohibited from leaving its display location as it is the reason why many people visit the museum, including traveling from other countries to do so. This practice is common among large institutions with famous works of art, such as the Mona Lisaby da Vinci, in the Louvre and The girlsby Velásquez, at the Prado Museum.

Surprisingly, the work was loaned to participate in a large retrospective exhibition dedicated to Vermeer at the Rijks Museum, which runs from February to June of this year. However, the institution had a great idea to deal with the period of absence of the work: inviting the public to send their versions of the girl with pearl earring to temporarily take the place of the original work.

The idea for the campaign came from an initiative that the Mauritshuis had already organized since April 2021, an Instagram page named My girl with a pearl (My girl with a pearl, in free translation). On this page, the museum published versions inspired by the work that the public sent over the years. For the current campaign, the open call took place online, it was enough to answer a form on the museum’s website and post the work with the hashtag #mygirlwithapearl. The best versions, according to a jury from the institution itself, are being exhibited physically and on a digital display in place of the original work.

The museum believes that the girl with pearl earring de Vermeer is a kind of muse, a source of inspiration and encouraged the public to abuse their creativity. Some of the versions shared on the campaign page prove that the public masterfully accepted the challenge and sent the most diverse and creative reinterpretations of the work.

Luísa Prestes, graduated in visual arts from UFRGS, is an artist, researcher and art educator. She participated in residencies, actions, performances and exhibitions in Brazil and abroad.

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