On the morning of October 12, 1654, in the city of Delft, there was a "thunderclap." A colossal explosion at an arsenal devastated an entire neighborhood, claiming hundreds of lives and injuring thousands more. Among the victims was a young pupil of Rembrandt, the author of the famous masterpiece "The Goldfinch" – Carel Fabritius. He was destined to lie under the rubble, amidst smoke and choking dust, next to his own canvas, for a long six hours. Help arrived too late.
While recounting what preceded the tragedy, the life of Fabritius and his work, writer and art critic Laura Cumming transports the reader to the world of the Netherlands in the 17th century – a world inhabited by artists such as Rembrandt, Vermeer, Adrian van der Werff, and many other outstanding painters. The Dutch Golden Age of painting is intricately woven into her narrative alongside 20th-century Scotland and contemporary London, while the fate of the talented Delft painter intertwines with that of the artist James Cumming, the father of the author.
By skillfully blending art history and memoir, Cumming creates an astonishing, moving, and profound story about the devastating power of art.
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