Die ganze Welt in einem Bild (2019)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Die ganze Welt in einem Bild is the German title of a French documentary film which premiered in 2019. 

 

In 2023, it was shown on French and German television (arte).

 

This film offers a detailed analysis of a painting by Johannes Vermeer: Officer and Laughing Girl.

 

Here is some basic information about this film:

 

** English title: The Whole World in One Painting

** French title: Le monde dans un tableau

** Director: Nicolas Autheman

** Run time: 76 minutes

 

Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) was a Dutch painter who lived and worked in Delft. He specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life.

 

He did not produce many paintings. The total number is probably 40 or 45. A few paintings have been lost. 34 paintings are certified. Three paintings are disputed.

 

The painting presented and analysed in this film was made in 1657 or 1658.

 

The painting shows an officer and a girl who are sitting in a room. The officer is wearing a very large hat, while the girl is laughing.

 

The officer is placed in the front, but we cannot see much of his face, because he is seen from the back. The girl is facing the viewer. Her face is visible.

 

What is the message of this film?

 

This painting shows the beginning of a new era in the history of the world: the age of globalism.

 

The film seems to be inspired by a book written by Timothy Brook:

 

Vermeer’s Hat: 

The Seventeenth Century and 

the Dawn of the Global World

 

(2008 = hardcover)

(2009 = paperback)

 

The title of the book refers to the painting of the officer and the laughing girl

 

The painting is placed on the cover of the book

 

The painting is one of six paintings which are studied and analysed in the book.

 

Five paintings by Vermeer and one painting by Hendrik van der Burch.

 

Here is a list of the six paintings:

 

# 1. View of Delft

# 2. Officer and Laughing Girl

# 3. Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window

# 4. The Geographer

# 5. Woman Holding a Balance

# 6. The Card Players by Hendrik van der Burch

 

What is the purpose of the book?

 

To show that the age of globalism begins in the 17th century, and not in the 18th or the 19th century, as it is commonly assumed.

 

Timothy Brook studies and analyses five paintings by Vermeer, including the painting which shows the officer and the laughing girl

 

Vermeer lived and worked in Delft during the seventeenth century. He never left the Netherlands. He never left his home town.

 

But details in his paintings point towards locations outside the Netherlands and outside Europe. They point towards locations in the New World.

 

Towards America and Asia.

 

Timothy Brooks concludes that the age of globalism begins in the 17th century.

 

While his conclusion is surprising, it seems to be supported by solid evidence.

 

What do reviewers say about the documentary film?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 77 percent, which corresponds to a rating of 3.9 stars on Amazon.

 

One user review of the film is posted on IMDb. This review offers a rating of 80 percent, which is almost the same as the rating of the website.

 

In my opinion, both ratings are too low. 

 

I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).

 

REFERENCES

 

The German version of the documentary film is available on YouTube. It has German narration and German subtitles.

 

Close to Vermeer

(2023)

 

Vermeer: The Greatest Exhibition

(2023)

 

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