by Camila Vázquez Marrero
Art is characterized by telling a story or conveying a feeling, whether it be music, theater, dance, or the visual arts. Connecting these stories and feelings can create an entirely new story. For this reason, I will connect Girl with a Pearl Earring with different songs in an effort to give this work of art a new story.
Girl with a Pearl Earring is one of the masterpieces by the Dutch painter Johannesburg Vermeer. It is not a realistic portrait of a specific person, but rather a “Tronie” ( Dutch term for painting created as a study of an idealized or imagined image featuring accessories and an exotic expression). Although I love having context behind a painting, I enjoy it when it doesn’t have a deep meaning, it allows me to imagine a reason and assign multiple stories to a single painting. Girl with a Pearl Earring gives me a sense of nostalgia. Feels like the feeling we get when we think we’ve seen or heard someone we miss. She looks back as if searching for someone; her lips are slightly parted, as if she were about to speak or had been startled. Yet at the same time her face appears gentle, or even sad or disappointed, as if she hadn’t managed to see the person she hoped it would be.
Glimpse of Us by Joji
The lack of a story behind this image allows us to connect this painting to a wide variety of songs, but I think my favorite so far has to be “Glimpse of Us” by Joji. Although at first glance these two seem completely different, I feel they connect well. “Glimpse of Us” is about someone who is in a new relationship but ends up thinking about someone from their past. Both works share an intimate, mysterious moment filled with emotions that are hard to explain. “Glimpse of Us” is the perfect match for Girl with a Pearl Earring because it lends a deep, melancholic interpretation to the young woman’s gaze.
Looking at this painting while listening to “Glimpse of Us” allows you to imagine how the girl remembers or encounters someone who is no longer in her life but who left a mark on it, showing her to be physically present but emotionally elsewhere.
“Glimpse of Us” depicts a relationship in which, despite having someone new in one’s life, there is still a constant comparison to someone from the past—no matter how wonderful and different the new person may be, small details and actions draw one back to the past. Thus, we might think of this young woman as merely a memory. We might also ask ourselves: Who imagined seeing someone else, the Girl with the pearl earring, or us as viewers? Who received “Glimpse of Us”?
Ocean Eyes by Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish – Ocean Eyes (Official Audio) – Lyrics In Description
On the other hand, another song we can compare this painting to is “Ocean Eyes” by Billie Eilish. Girl with a Pearl Earring shows us a girl looking directly at the viewer; her gaze is calm, somewhat mysterious, and doesn’t let us know what she’s thinking. “Ocean Eyes” speaks of the eyes of the person being admired, expressing fascination and attraction toward them. Comparing “Ocean Eyes” with Girl with a Pearl Earring highlights the importance of the gaze, imagining how she might be lost in those eyes she admires.
The blue of the turban she wears on her head is one of the most important visual elements in this work and another key reason why linking this piece to “Ocean Eyes” works. Blue conveys depth and tranquility, as well as a sense of melancholy, which aligns with the song’s atmosphere. Furthermore, the combination of blue and yellow easily evokes images of the sea and sand. Vermeer gives us no context about who the young woman is (because, as far as we know, there really isn’t any); we know nothing about her identity, we have no clue about her thoughts, she is a complete stranger. “Ocean Eyes” shares this mysterious quality in a way, as the person described in the song seems fascinating and hypnotic, but we really have no idea who she truly is.
As Final thought
I think both songs connect well with the painting in different ways. “Glimpse of Us” adds a dramatic story to the painting, a sense of nostalgia, and more emotion. On the other hand, “Ocean Eyes” manages to add a bit of story without over-dramatizing it, while preserving the beauty and mystery for which the painting is famous. I enjoy this exercise of connecting images with songs; finding connections between a painting and several songs at once is fun and enhances creativity. As an artist, it’s an exercise I’ll continue to work on, as I think it will help me with future artistic inspiration.
What other songs you think could work with this artwork and why? Comment down bellow
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