Vermeer is the surprise guest for Minneapolis Institute of Arts' 100th birthday

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts had promised surprise masterpieces for its centennial celebration, and it delivered a big one Friday: one of only 34 known works by 17th-century Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer.

January 16, 2015 at 4:05PM
MIA staff members got a close up look at Johannes Vermeer's Woman in Blue Reading a Letter at the staff unveiling of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts' first big "surprise" of its centennial year on Friday, January 16, 2015, in Mineapolis, Minn.
MIA staff members got a close up look at Johannes Vermeer's Woman in Blue Reading a Letter at the staff unveiling of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts' first big "surprise" of its centennial year on Friday, January 16, 2015, in Mineapolis, Minn. (Dml - Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
An MIA staff member got a close up look at Johannes Vermeer's Woman in Blue Reading a Letter at the staff unveiling of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts' first big "surprise" of its centennial year on Friday, January 16, 2015, in Mineapolis, Minn.
(Dml - Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

(Photo by Renee Jones-Schneider, StarTribune)

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts had promised surprise masterpieces for its centennial celebration, and it delivered a big one Friday, unveiling "Woman Reading a Letter," one of only 34 known works by 17th century Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer.

The oil painting -- an enigmatic gem about 18 inches high and 15 inches wide -- will be shown for a limited time in the museum's Cargill Gallery, just off the main lobby. There is no charge for admission.

The MIA scored this coup via a loan from Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum. It is a prime example of Vermeer's mastery of light and shadow, with the woman's dress rendered in a striking blue created from lapis lazuli, a semiprecious stone that was imported from Afghanistan, ground into powder and then mixed with oil to make paint.

It's the first of three promised masterpieces on loan that the MIA will be unveiling at unannounced times throughout its centennial year.

Look for a bigger story about the Vermeer later today at startribune.com/art.

Vermeer's Woman in Blue Reading a Letter
(Randy Salas/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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about the writer

Tim Campbell

Senior Editor, Arts & Entertainment

Tim Campbell is the senior arts & entertainment editor for the Star Tribune, supervising coverage of music, theater, movies, art and TV. In a four-decade career, he has worked in the news department, business, sports and graphics, and was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative project.

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