Photo: Joseph Coscia Jr.
Of the approximately thirty-four paintings attributed to Johannes Vermeer—whose extraordinary art has captivated viewers since his rediscovery in the nineteenth century—wall maps and other cartographic objects are depicted in nine of them, including The Frick Collection’s renowned Officer and Laughing Girl and the artist’s masterpiece in Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum, The Art of Painting. With stunning reproductions and incisive text, the Frick’s new publication, Vermeer’s Maps, is the most comprehensive study of the artist’s depiction of wall maps to date. Drawing on rare surviving examples of the physical maps and other primary sources, author Rozemarijn Landsman examines this intriguing aspect of Vermeer’s work, greatly enriching and expanding our understanding of the art and life of the “Sphinx of Delft.”
As Landsman writes in the book’s introduction, “While scholars continue to remark on the prominence of maps in Vermeer’s art, these objects are rarely the center of attention. […] Questions about the maps in Vermeer’s paintings linger: What kinds of maps are they? How were they made? For whom were they produced? What were their functions? Above all, the questions of what maps meant for Vermeer and his art and what may have motivated him to choose these specific objects to adorn his painted walls remain to be addressed.” A doctoral candidate at Columbia University, Landsman was the 2019–21 Anne L. Poulet Curatorial Fellow at The Frick Collection.
Vermeer’s Maps is being published in October 2022 by The Frick Collection in association with DelMonico Books/D.A.P. New York. The 128-page hardcover volume includes 68 color images and 30 in black and white ($39.95, member price $31.96). It includes a foreword by Ian Wardropper, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Director of the Frick, followed by Landsman’s introduction and her essays on maps and mapmakers in seventeenth-century Holland and Vermeer’s particular interest in rendering cartographic works, interpreting their significance to him and to his audience. The publication can be pre-ordered online at shop.frick.org by emailing sales@frick.org, or by calling 212.547.6849. It will also be available for purchase at the Museum Shop at Frick Madison this fall.
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BASIC INFORMATION
Website: frick.org
Building project: frickfuture.org
Bloomberg Connects app: frick.org/app
Frick Madison visitor address: 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street, New York, NY 10021
Museum hours: Thursday through Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; closed Monday through Wednesday. See website for holiday schedule.
Admission: Timed tickets are required and may be purchased online. $22 general public; $17 seniors and visitors with disabilities; $12 students. Admission is always free for members. Pay-what-you-wish admission is offered Thursdays from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Please note: Children under ten are not admitted to the museum.
COVID-19/health and safety policies: frick.org/visit/guidelines
Ticket purchases: frick.org/tickets. For questions: admissions@frick.org
Group reservations: For questions: groupreservations@frick.org
Public programs: A calendar of online, virtual, and video events is available on our website.
Shop: Open during museum hours as well as online daily.
Refreshments: A light menu, offered by Joe Coffee, is available during museum hours.
Subway: #6 local to 77th Street station; #Q to 72nd Street station. Bus: M1, M2, M3, and M4 southbound on Fifth Avenue to 75th Street and northbound on Madison Avenue to 74th Street.
Museum mailing address: 1 East 70th Street at Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10021
Photography: Allowed only in the Frick Madison Lobby.
Reading room: Access is offered by appointment Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. For further information, visit frick.org/visit/library.
