Vermeer painted the Girl without any hard lines. This technique is called sfumato, the Italian word for smoky or blurred. This means that all kinds of details are missing, such as the hook for the earring. And where does her nose disappear to on her cheek?

You can see more than Vermeer actually painted: your brain fills in the details so subtly that you dont even notice it happening. But this also means that everyone sees something different, You, the viewer, can decide who she is. Whats her background? What does she do? What does she worry about? What are her dreams? You can fill it all in for yourself.

Mauritshuis, The Hague