Johannes Vermeer

Johannes Vermeer (October 1632 - buried on December 15, 1675) was a Dutch painter, who lived and worked in Delft. He is also sometimes referred to as Vermeer of Delft or Johannes van der Meer. Alongside Rembrandt, Vermeer is the best known painter of the Dutch Golden Age, and his paintings are admired for their transparent colours, careful composition and brilliant use of light.

Influence of other painters

• Carel Fabritius (1622–1654) who spent his final years in Delft. Vermeer's ideas about perspective, and his tendency to paint everyday themes were possibly influenced by Fabritius.
• Italian painter Caravaggio (1573–1610), indirectly through Dutch followers.
• Leonart Bramer, another painter from Delft, and witness to his marriage.
• Vermeer owned a Dirk van Baburen painting, which appears in two of Vermeer's paintings.