Rediscovered at the end of the 19th century,Vermeer’s art has intrigued and astounded ever since.Vermeer was unlike his Dutch contemporaries and other painters in his own century and indeed stands out in the whole of the history of painting as unique.The perfection of his work, which everyone recognises and acknowledges, is itself an enigma: how, why, in what conditions, and with whom around him didVermeer paint these silent scenes whose magic holds us in thrall? In answer to these questions, this book presents us with the three different viewpoints of: Gilles Aillaud, a painter and writer whose extreme conciseness of language gives his words the allure of a limpid essay on limpidity; John Michael Montias, who unties the most important items in his biography: his social origins, his family background, his assets, his contact with the painting of his day, his city; and Albert Blankert, who gives us an essential analysis from the perspective of the history of art. To comprehend Vermeer's originality, we need to place him in the context of the art of his era, understand his influences and explore their similarities.In addition to these essays,this book contains a complete catalogue of Vermeer’s work, an assessment of his critical fortune, a selected bibliography and chronology.