最初是来荷兰之前看的同名电影,当初只是想找与荷兰有关的英语电影,于是就看了这个还有梵高传,看了之后非常喜欢,萌生了一定要去海牙看看这幅画的念头。于是,是在三月份吧,去了海牙的皇家莫里茨美术馆。我在这幅画前站了很久,要离开那个展厅的时候还折回去又看,总想彻底捕捉画中女孩的表情,那神情像是静静微笑又像是淡淡哀愁,还像是欲说还休,她眼中流露的像是懵懂的爱欲又像是放弃的无奈…或许是因为看过电影的关系想得有些多了,但是你只要看着她的眼睛、她的红唇、她的珍珠耳环,你看着那流转的光彩,便会觉得,画家对她/她对画家有着非同寻常的情愫(Jane轻描淡写却又认真的对我说,“是有故事的”)。后来四月在卢浮宫,我在著名的蒙娜丽莎前也停留了很久,也同样折回去看了第二遍,但那并不是因为我对这幅画有多么着迷,而是因为我想知道蒙娜丽莎究竟好在哪里,但无论怎么看,我都不懂Leonado da Vinci (2011-6-19佛罗伦萨碰到的导游说不能只叫达芬奇),看着蒙娜丽莎我觉得自己是面对着一个纠结的线团、层层的迷雾或者是让人头大的数学题,这幅画在我看来是一个文艺复兴天才的理性闪光仅此而已(当然了是很美的闪光),但看着Vermeer的少女,我觉得我看到了一个美丽而又忧伤的传说,这是一幅你可以用心灵去体会的画作。
然后从卢浮宫回来后不久我就又读到了Girl with a Pearl Earring 的原著小说,同名电影即是由此书改编而来。
我是在格大library of arts 里找上课要用的Heart of Darkness 的 Norton edition时邂逅此书的。前者没有找到最后在课上问同学借了,但遇见这本小说带给我的欣喜要远远大于没找到Heart of Darkness的郁闷。
看了电影,看了画,看了小说,5月再去一次代尔伏特,这一切就完整了,我第一次在一片陌生的土地追寻一个莫须有的传说,有点大条但是还挺罗曼蒂克。
我希望我能在代尔伏特的广场找到书中描写的那个八角形岔路(后来证明虽然没有那个八角星但是情况还是很像,因为有个四角星,然后我数了一下Griet的确有八个方向可去)。
当Griet的肖像被Vermeer的妻子Catharina发现之后,Griet从众人拥挤的画室里逃了出来:
I ran down the Oude Langendijck and across the bridge into Market Square… I stopped in the circle of tiles with the eight-pointed star in the middle. Each point indicated a direction I could take.
I could go back to my parents.
I could find Pieter at the Meat Hall and agree to marry him.
I could go to van Ruijven’s house – he would take me in with a smile.
I could go to van Leeuwenhook and ask him to take pity on me.
I could go to Rotterdam and search for Frans.
I could go off on my own somewhere far away.
I could go back to Papists’ Corner.
I could go into the New Church and pray to God for guidance.
I stood in the circle, turning round and round as I thought.
I might say, “What about the way he looked at me for so many hours while he painted this painting?”
I might say, “What about your mother and your husband, who have gone behind your back and deceive you?”
Or I might simply say, “Your husband touched me, here, in this room.”