Girl With A Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer

Exhibited at Mauritshuis, the Hague, 1665
credit here  

Opinion: The Girl With the Pearl Earring is such a mysterious painting. I had actually researched it prior to enrolling in Art History. I saw the movie and read the book and can say that both rank among my favorite films and novels. The familiarity helped me identify with the painting. 

Theory: The Girl With A Pearl Earring was created during the Baroque period. Vermeer was especially known for his domestic scenes and use of the colors blue and yellow, as evident in this painting. The focal point of the painting, as the name suggests, is the pearl earring. A strength of the painting is its use of light, illuminating the girls face and highlighting the earring. Vermeer was ahead of his time in terms of his understanding of colors and light. The background is dark, which is uncharacteristic for Vermeer and demonstrating that his focus was only on the girl (credit here).