Listening
Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
- on loan / ɒn loʊn / (idiom) – lent to someone or something for a limited time
Example:His special edition books were on loan to the library for a special exhibition.
- pigment / ˈpɪg mənt / (n.) – a chemical that gives something color
Example:The artist mixes different kinds of pigments to make his paintings bright and colorful.
- evoke / ɪˈvoʊk / (v.) – to cause something such as a feeling or memory to be remembered
Example:The musician composed a sad song evoking the memories of lost love.
- surrealist / səˈri əˌlɪst / (adj.) – relating to a style of 20th-century art or literature that shows strange or impossible elements
Example:The author’s new novel is his first surrealist work, characterized by an unusual and weird story.
- superimpose / ˌsu pər ɪmˈpoʊz / (v.) – to place an image, shape, etc., over something else where both items are visible
Example:The designer superimposed the old city map over the modern city map to show how the landscape had changed.
Article
Read the text below.
After sending its most famous work to be featured in Amsterdam’s blockbuster 2023 exhibition of nearly every work by Johannes Vermeer, the Mauritshuis museum found itself with a blank space where the iconic Girl with a Pearl Earring had been displayed.
The Hague-based institution turned to more than 2,700 artists, from Texas to Ukraine, from age 7 to 70, who created their own interpretations of the 17th-century masterpiece.
A selection of 60 works using materials ranging from orange peels to bottle caps to sweatshirts was exhibited in the museum while the painting was on loan 40 miles (64 kilometers) to the north.
“The submissions continue to come, it will never end with her,” Martine Gosselink, director of the Mauritshuis museum, told The Associated Press, pointing to the ongoing popularity of works featuring the mystery girl.
A 2020 investigation into the painting using a battery of modern imaging techniques uncovered details about Vermeer’s methods and the makeup of his pigments, but not the young woman’s identity.
“I bring together the original The Girl with a Pearl Earring and the face of a Wayang puppet,” artist Rob de Heer told the AP, standing in front of a screen in the museum’s foyer where all of the winning submissions are displayed.
De Heer, who primarily works with mixed media, wanted to take an image from the Golden Age history of the Netherlands and combine it with one evoking its colonial legacy. Wayang puppets are a traditional form of theater in parts of Indonesia, which was ruled by the Netherlands until 1949.
His surrealist work is followed in the rolling display by a piece featuring the original girl’s face superimposed on an antique tea tin.
Other submissions include works by South Korean artist Nanan Kang, who used an ear of corn for the face; Georgian artist Nino Kavazauri, who reimagined a modern girl waiting at a bus stop with a cup of coffee; and Simon Chong, a Welsh animator, who works on the popular television series “Bob’s Burgers” and created a girl in the show’s cartoon style.
This article was provided by The Associated Press.
Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
- Some artists used simple materials like orange peels and bottle caps to recreate Girl with a Pearl Earring. Do you think the artists’ submissions were less valuable because of the materials used? Why or why not? What do you think makes an artwork valuable? Discuss.
- Should other artists be allowed to recreate famous works? Why or why not? If you were to create your own version of Girl with a Pearl Earring or a version of any popular artwork in your country, how would you make it different? Discuss.
Discussion B
- When the Mauritshuis sent Girl with a Pearl Earring to another museum, they filled the empty space it left with creative interpretations from artists around the world. How do you think visitors might feel seeing different interpretations instead of the original painting? Discuss.
- If you were to visit Mauritshuis, which would you prefer to see: the original artwork or the creative interpretations? Why? Discuss.
