Peter J.
Yelp
Wonderful museum but staff apparently has never heard of Vermeer!
I had the most bizarre experience at the Städel in mid-January... Vermeer's "The Geographer" is part of the wonderful collection -- highlighted among other places on the cover of the official museum guide. I was looking forward to seeing it.
While it's strangely not included on the list of 9 key paintings featured on the Museum Map, the fine print in the "Old Masters" section does list Vermeer as one the painters represented. I asked the guard on duty in that gallery where I might find this painting. He was not familiar with it by name or artist, but showing him an image on my phone triggered a memory that yes they do have that painting, but he wasn't sure where it would be displayed. He was pretty sure it wasn't in the Old Masters section, and directed me downstairs, toward a Dürer exhibit. He was pretty certain it was displayed with other Prints. So then I went to the information desk and asked where I could find the museum's Vermeer. The lady at the desk didn't seem to know that name, and seemed unsure what I was asking. I showed her the Museum Map and pointed to where it says "Vermeer." No recognition. But she had an idea, and pulled out a binder--their master reference that tells where all the art in the museum is displayed. There under the V's she was able to find it -- "Vermeer!"
Per the book, she said it was displayed upstairs in Old Masters, and gave me a room number. I went back upstairs, and together with the guard we searched all the paintings in that small room -- the painting was not there. I went back to the information desk and reported that the painting was not there. The response was a smile, shrug, and "Es tut mir leid." I started to wonder if I was in some weird twilight zone where no one knows what should be one of the jewels of their collection. (I imagined showing up at the Louvre and the staff scratching their heads, saying "Mona Lisa? Hmmm, no, don't know it.")
That's when I happened to look into the gift shop, where the first thing you see is a huge stack of the official museum guide -- with Vermeer's "The Geographer" on the cover! I asked the staff at the gift shop counter if they knew where it might be. The man who seemed to be in charge told me that oh, it's probably not on display right now because they're doing a lot of construction upstairs, and part of the gallery is closed. They're building a new deck, he said. "Come back in six months and maybe you can see it then!" he said. (Having just been upstairs I definitely didn't recall any construction or closed off sections, so this one more odd twist.)
In hindsight I realize the painting had likely been sent to the Rijksmuseum for the big Vermeer exhibit, but it's so odd to me that no one would know this. I mean, there are only 34 Vermeers in existence -- you'd think a museum that had one would pay close attention to it! It's not something you accidentally misplace.
(p.s. for what it's worth, Titian's beautiful "Portrait of a Young Man" is hidden in a side room, facing away from the entrance -- maybe this is another treasure they don't consider important. Titian isn't even mentioned on the Museum Map's list of prominent old masters....)