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After Vermeer competition

posted 17th June 2009

After Vermeer Competition winners

This was a difficult competition to judge because the quality of many of the entries was so good, and the variation in media used made it yet more complex. The different interpretations of the theme 'After Vermeer' added another layer to score against, and the entries that I perceived added additional richness to the theme were the ones that caught my eye. In the end there was a clear winner, but several are worthy of a special mention and two are so good that we are adding runner up prizes.

The winner is Amano with the entry Milkedmaid. This digital photograph is technically very good. The composition is excellent, but most of all the photographer has thought very carefully about creating a contemporary take on Vermeer. There are clever touches of the Duchy product, the green wellies, and subtle references to the Vermeer props without compromising the reality of the 21st century. The bold choice of a figure with a contemporary hairdo and no bonnet added works well. The direct emulation of milk being poured from the jug takes us straight to Vermeer's famous painting of the Milkmaid. Well done Amano. You win an Amazon voucher of £50 plus a set of 100 A5 postcards of your image.




The two exceptional runners up are Anned's watercolour (1) image, Young Woman with a water pitcher. This image is a bold take on the 'After Vermeer' theme, and plays with the composition, light and tone of Vermeer's work, creating a delicate abstract piece that plays with layers and colours in a delightful way. Anned wins 20 standard postcards of her image.

The other (equal) runner up is Val Mager's Girl in a blue Niqab. This is produced using a printmaking method called collograph, and is a well controlled result in this medium. This seemingly modest monochrome image captures a telling iconic image for the 21st century, and an interesting composition. What is so successful about this image is the depiction of the vulnerable eyes of the woman, that carries us back to the girl with the pearl earring. Val also wins 20 standard postcards of her image.

Other entries worth a mention are Stan Dickinson's Young Girl reading a text message by open Windows, with its cleverly thought out modern props of Windows on a laptop and the girl receiving a text message (good or bad news?). Also beautifully executed is Shrli's If Vermeer were here - would he?, the balance of chiaroscuro in this image is wonderful. MF's Bea with Pearl is lovely. The composition is unusual and works well, and the melting eye and pearl have been acutely observed and emulated in Photoshop. Finally Wooshdemon's Tudor image makes spectacular dramatic use of light. Personally I think of Joseph Wright of Derby or even Caravaggio more than Vermeer when I look at this superb image.

Jane Horton
Curriculum Director