Young Woman with a Lute

The young woman’s fingers work at the lute while her gaze turns toward the window. She appears to be tuning, preparing for music that has yet to begin. Johannes Vermeer painted this quiet interval around 1662–63. Other objects suggest company. Open songbooks and a viola da gamba, a bowed instrument resting on the floor, point toward a duet. Among wealthy young people in the Dutch Republic, music formed part of an education and provided opportunities for meeting and flirtation. The picture leaves the expected partner beyond its frame. A large map of Europe hangs behind the woman. Such maps decorated Dutch homes and expressed interest in a world connected by travel, trade and navigation. Vermeer gives this room a broad geographical backdrop while keeping the action concentrated in a small movement of the hands. Look again at the gap between the instrument, the woman’s face and the window. Your attention can move along the same short circuit as hers. The objects suggest a shared musical occasion. For now, the only musician in view is occupied with tuning.