Bringing a Dutch master home – what makes Vermeer so remarkable?

An exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam brings together more of his paintings than ever before, writes William Cook. It shows just how brilliant an artist he was

Staff at the museum install Vermeer’s ‘The Milkmaid’ (Rijksmuseum/Kelly Schenk)

In the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, one of the world’s great art galleries, art lovers from all around the world are flocking to the biggest exhibition of the year. The Rijksmuseum’s new Vermeer show has received a slew of five-star reviews, laden with superlatives. Does it deserve such lavish praise?

Wandering around this exhibition, wide-eyed, my own review is just three words long: believe the hype. Vermeer really was that special, and this show really is that good. But what makes him so remarkable? What sets him apart from other artists? And why is he so revered?

“I think it starts with his ability to observe,” says Pieter Roelofs, head of paintings and sculpture at the Rijksmuseum, as we stand before these timeless masterpieces that are so powerful yet so subtle and discreet. “There is no other artist in the 17th century, in the Netherlands, who is able to observe as he did.” He’s quite right, of course – but that’s really only the half of it.