Vermeer's 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' will head to Japan this summer in rare loan

"The painting took a short sojourn in 2023 for the major Johannes Vermeer survey exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, but has not travelled internationally since its world tour in 2012-14, the last time the Mauritshuis was closed for building work. " Girl with a Pearl Earring is one of the most famous paintings in the world, and is a key reason for many people to visit the Mauritshuis," says a statement from the museum. "It is therefore loaned to other institutions only in highly exceptional circumstances.""

"The travelling exhibition The Masters of the 17th Century: Dutch Painting from the Mauritshuis went to Tokyo and Kobe before opening at the Frick in New York. The touring show was visited by 2.2 million people and helped to fund the Mauritshuis's renovations."

"The exhibition at the Nakanoshima Museum of Art will be organised by the Asahi Shimbun, one of the largest media organisations in Japan. Asahi Shimbun, which also sponsored the 2012-14 touring exhibition, will work as a project partner with Mauritshuis over the next four years. "The Asahi Shimbun organises several exhibitions each year with museums around the world," says Martine Gosselink, the general director of the Mauritshuis, in a statement. "We are highly honoured to be able to work with the media organisation on the presentation in Osaka in 2026.""

Mauritshuis will lend Girl with a Pearl Earring to the Nakanoshima Museum of Art in Osaka this summer because the museum will close from 24 August to 20 September for building alterations. The painting is highly prized and is loaned only in exceptional circumstances, having last travelled internationally during a 2012–14 world tour and briefly in 2023 for a Rijksmuseum Vermeer survey. The loan is organised in partnership with the Asahi Shimbun, which sponsored the previous tour and will act as a project partner for four years. Revenue from the loan will contribute to the Mauritshuis's alterations and refurbishment. A previous touring exhibition visited Tokyo, Kobe and New York and attracted 2.2 million visitors, helping to fund earlier renovations.

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