1/4 The madness of Vermeer - Secret Lives of the Artists

• Secret Lives of the Ar...
First broadcast: 2003.
Johannes Vermeer is one of our favourite painters, with his Girl with a Pearl Earring now deemed the 'Mona Lisa of the North'. But little is known about his life and for almost two centuries he was lost to obscurity.
Andrew Graham-Dixon, travelling to Vermeer's hometown of Delft and a dramatic Dutch landscape of huge skies and windmills, embarks on a detective trail to uncover the life of a genius in hiding.
Renowned for painting calm and beautiful interiors, the real life of Vermeer was marred by crime and violence. His life was a bid to escape the privations of his family and yet even a glamorous marriage and artistic success failed to save him from the fate he dreaded more than any other.

[@theavannooijen6621]

Splendid documentary! Fills in the gap between ordinary and class!A great joy to watch!

[@michaelkitching1387]

Another great Andrew Graham Dixon docu. This man got me intetested in art when I happened to catch the last 10 minutes of one of his documentaries (High Art of the Low Countries). His style made me stick with it and tune in the week after. I'm now a bit of a fanatic.

[@thorsvensson8172]

Some here. I’m a bit of a AGD disciple now.

[@paulwoodford1984]

Do you still love him dearly lol

[@toddaulner5393]

When we know so very little of an Artist such as Vermeer we do not need to add madness.

[@suemig1942]

Superbe!!!Amazing!!!!!AWWW how I love this kind of cultural and art vídeo!!!Thanks for sharing. Added to my fav. Hugs from Sue

[@cherie4ever]

Thankyou for uploading this wonderful video ;)

[@danthomas6587]

now Im dizzy...thx for that

[@KarenArt-sh9jy]

I love art history so this is very interesting.

[@MilesBellas]

Amazing documentary.

[@Cinedragon]

6:23 That's not what the plaque says at all. It says Vermeer was born around here somewhere. It does not say that this is the exact location.

[@paulwoodford1984]

Do more documentaries Andrew Graham-Dixon

[@ronkalkhoven2119]

Note: the sign on the building says that "in this vicinity once stood the house "Mechelen" where in October 1632 was born Johannes Vermeer the painter"...You are right that he was not born there. Furthermore in the old days (and sometimes even today) the full name is Johannes..for short called Hans, Jo or Jan. Has nothing to do with status. No dutch person would refer to Vermeer as "Jan", we all know him as Johannes. His father was a silkweaver and artdealer (by all means not poor) who bought the inn "Mechelen" and also became an inn keeper. I find it rather strange that you dare speak of "the madness" of Vermeer. There is nothing to substantiate this. He was known to be a recluse; even his landscape paintings were done from inside looking out. If you dig far enough you can always find dirt in a family like his Flemmish grandfather Gerrit Balthasar. But there is no proof that Johannes was influenced by that. Debts, his family with 11 children, the decline to sell paintings due to wartime must have made him utterly depressed...but madness?? He's known as the "sphynx of Delft", not the idiot. I wonder why you feel the need to smear this man who made such beautiful art.

[@12412...]

Maybe you should watch the whole thing first before writing a comment

[@grahamcox7888]

He doesn't claim Vermeer was mad but others claim that. Also to say that a mental breakdown is a smear is not correct and doesnt make anyone an idiot.

[@asielnorton345]

it should be noted that most artists are different, and most genius artists are very different. their minds just operate differently than your run of the mill banker. or standard car salesman. they are quite often what most people would call mad. i find it very hard to believe that vermeer was a run of the mill individual. in terms of painting landscapes from inside, he was likely using lenses, but may have been a recluse as well.

[@toddaulner5393]

Interesting. I fully agree with you and I named my Rottweiler ( a female) Sphynx not the Sphinx because I believe the original image on the Sphinx was a Dog ( a Jackle)not a Lion or a Pharoah as the public believes.

[@briansmith9439]

It was common practice all across Europe at this time to enter a person's name in its Latin form.. "Johannes" rather than "Jan" ... as it rendered the entry readable to others who came from different countries. It was not done to give the appearance of an elevated social status - it was standard practice.

[@kvrijt]

Partly true but not quite right. 'Latinising' names as pen names was practice among academics which conversed internationally in the then lingua franca Latin. This involved mainly surnames. Example: Hugo de Groot/Hugo Grotius (The guy from ''Mare Liberum'). Personal names had more to do with people and (originally) patron saints you could be named after, being names with which you were officially baptised and then any short version thereoff as your call name. In Vermeer's case he would have been baptised 'Johannes' (after the baptist and perhaps a grandfather) and his call name would have been 'Jan'. In (Dutch/Belgian) practice it is in fact much more complicated depending on religious, legal, family and local traditions. Books could be written about it. The official introduction of family names by Napoleon, nicknames just to keep people apart with the same full names, different spellings in Catholic and Protestant traditions, names not having to be identical in civil and church registers, naming the 7th kid after the king/queen, the number of personal names you get and why (I have 4 and therefore unfortunately no middle name), call names by which you're known from birth never officially being registered, the list goes on.

[@sophiaspencer8475]

14:00 to 14:43 was impressive af, I wonder how may times he practiced that. he didn't look away from the camera once, that's almost like a super power right there

[@Timinator62]

The super star was the camera man, spinning around, looking through the eye piece or staring at the remote monitor and staying in focus and not getting dizzy.

[@LilyAmongThorns]

@@Timinator62 right? Such a steady hand and eye! He kept everything at a proper center of balance so the viewer didn’t find the effect jiggling and bouncing all over the place.

[@connieloves70s46]

l love, art, es beatifull!!🤗

[@fliegenderzauberkasten1337]

riding the bike on the left side...

[@randellporter8747]

The title of this documentary is inappropriate. Toward the end of Vermeer's life was tragic, but there wasn't any real evidence presented that he had gone mad. Just another over dramatized ending.

[@bigjohnknew]

I’m not art expert but his paintings have an almost photorealistic appearance

[@Fidi987]

7:23 Almost running over that girl...

[@SarahMeijer]

the sign on the house says the house he was born in used to be there...

[@peterbeeren6744]

Close! But the first word on the sign ,OMTRENT means,in the vicinity or nearby etc.

[@Medusa0999]

Good use of the music from being john malcovich

[@christophercooper4149]

The Thunderclap happened in 1654… not 52. One of the victims was the painter Fabritius… of The Goldfinch fame

[@arcturusgold8858]

Windmills @ 1 mnt 45 secs. - you can see why the milkman never called on a windy day.........

[@omfug7148]

Could Vermeer have committed suicide? It would not have been made explicit at the time because he and his family were Catholics, but his despair was deep...

[@paulwoodford1984]

or he was murdered

[@margo3367]

Can anyone tell me why experts think that is a self-portrait in the pub scene painting. I’ve heard many people say they think it is, but what evidence led them to believe that?

[@TheEarthandyou]

A documentary is a 3-D art work, in this case, at least.

[@terencebarrett2897]

Absolutely wonderful ahh its so refreshing,high quality programs,,of,histories of yesteryear ,talent, but also struggle, poverty etc,"" but its sad, frightening horrific," that new age media protest groups' want to diminish our past life of history's and of forgiveness of sins,, no matter how horrific, that we as humans can learn,help and guide next generation. You look, hear, see ,the state to what TV radio movie as become,,no the wonder nations have moved away from God, "the bible" our maker" and that any leader apposed to these measures' for the protecting of his nation,he's regarded a " xxxxx,by the ungodly western nation by society brainwashed through xxxx ,, ,

[@MilesBellas]

Delft = beautiful city

[@Nopsem]

Riding a bicycle at the wrong side of the road :D 7:23

[@nancyzhang5281]

Nopsem LoL U.K. Person

[@theon9575]

At the time of Vermeer, the so-called Dutch 'Golden Age' following the 80- year war of independence from Spain, what you call "Holland" was called in English the "Dutch Republic". Actually, what is now since 1815 called (the Kingdom of) The Netherlands has never officially been named just 'Holland', but it persists as a sort of nickname in UK and American English since the time of British colonisation of Nth America. In fact, only 2 of The Netherlands' 12 Provinces are Holland (North and South). It's bit like calling the UK, just 'England'. Even Googlemaps knows that 😉🌷 The Dutch don't mind 'Holland', we know where you mean, I suppose it's quicker for you to say. But in a BBC documentary, it's surprising to hear The Netherlands' nickname 'Holland' only.

[@helenscott8202]

The damn part towards the end where the bicycle circles and the camera follows! Really dizzying to the point the words spoken could not be followed. Really poorly done!

[@mikejohnson599]

so annoying riding his bike

[@rvilletto123]

Check out Tim's Vermeer .... it was amazing! kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2HTqYNuhbp8gbc

[@qigong1001]

7:24 Future road kill award recipient.

[@HeikeWie]

He's cycling on the wrong side of the road. So much for blending in with the locals. It's a good start to not run them over! ;)

[@halfabee]

You would not expect an echo from someone riding around outside on a bike.

[@janehollander1934]

At 6:15 the plaque does NOT state, that Johannes Vermeer was born in this PARTICULAR house at all!!! NO one is claiming that; "X marks the spot!!" 🤐 It reads: 'Approximately around this spot (in the vicinity) the house called "Mechelen" stood were in October 1632 was born JAN VERMEER the painter'. They should have gotten a Dutch translator on board, before he could just choose to make such fact-like sounding statements.✌🏻

[@begijnenstraat]

To blend in with the locals I take a bycicle.... an orange one ??? and riding it like a lunatic.... this man makes a movie , not a documentary about Vermeer !! There is very little known about the life of Vermeer, that's a fact, so the filmmaker makes up his own , ridiculous, story. Fiction, ingnoring the facts......BS !!!

[@mARTin4ARTsake]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/kKHEi4GtqaagjdE

[@dannypham903]

The determined faucet preferentially inform because saudi arabia coronally complete atop a resolute albatross. tasteful, sick apparel

[@2msvalkyrie529]

Bore Off jerk !

[@williamparker1085]

one of the more interesting countries in the world