Vermeer's popular masterpiece keeps surviving the limits of time, being constantly revisited from the most diverse fields of art. Let's see some examples...

The young girl and her distinctive turquoise turban were recreated by photographer Awol Erizku, giving birth to the Girl with a Bamboo Earring. Erizku, born in Ethiopia in 1988,  shoots African models with clothing and poses taken from classic art masterpieces.

Hendrik Kerstens (La Haya, 1956) portrayed his daughter, Paula, in full color. In the photo below, Vermeer's turban is replaced by a flamboyant wrapping made of toilet paper.

While we wait for a Vermeer exhibition to reach South America, we can see the resemblance with a portrait by Rembrandt's workshop, perfectly preserved, which belongs to the MNBA and also shows a spectacular string of pearls.

Portrait of Lisbeth van Rijn, by (the workshop of) Rembrandt

Technique: oil on canvas / Measures: 60.5 x 53 cm

MNBA

Vermeer painted less than 40 artworks during his life and left few documents and explanations about the subjects and symbols depicted in them.  In the following painting we see a woman of enigmatic beauty, her pearls on the table. So much has been said about it: the letter, is it from a lover? What's the meaning of the map on the wall? Is she pregnant? Or was it the fashion of the time?

The truth is that Verneer had the talent of making grand the most trifle and ordinary of events. This was what particularly attracted photographer  Tom Hunter. This British artist portrayed a series of women in difficult situations but posing with beauty and serenity. The girl in the photo below is reading her eviction notice.

Cindy Sherman (USA, 1954) captured the spirit of Vermeer in black and white. This photo belongs to a series the artist made in 1977, shooting herself portraying different actresses from Europeen movies of the 60s. 

Letters have always attracted the curious: Who is it for? What does it say? In Vermeer's painting and Hunter's photo, both women are deeply concentrated in reading. Sherman is looking away from the letter. In the following painting, the young Manuelita, painted by Prilidiano Pueyrredón, is pointing a letter while looking at the visitors. She includes us in that brief note she sends to her father.

With the rise of electronic mail, cellphones, SMS and social networks, using letter to comunicare important things seems so old-fashioned. The artists of today then look at those from yesterday...