ABSTRACT
The paintings by Johannes Vermeer always surprise us with their realistic appearance: the expressions and gestures of the figures; the texture and form of the various depicted objects; and the well-composed interior space. 1 The meticulous observations of reflected light, the seemingly out-of-focus renderings using paint to resemble beads of light, and the well-calculated differences in size among his motifs remind us of an image seen through the viewfinder of a camera. As a result, from as early as the end of the nineteenth century, the argument has been advanced that Vermeer must have used a mirror, or a camera obscura, the forerunner of the modern camera, to produce his works. 2 In honor of Michael Montias, I would like to add several observations to the debate about Vermeer’s use of the camera obscura.
