It's worth the trip for this once-in-a-lifetime show

EXHIBITION Vermeer Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

- Nancy Durrant

YES, before you ask, she's here. In this, the most complete retrospective of works by the Dutch master Johannes Vermeer ever mounted, with 28 of his 37(ish) paintings brought together for the first time, his most famous work had to be present. So yes, the Girl with a Pearl Earring (c 1664-67), with her dewy skin, her level gaze, a beauty made breathtaking by that tiny dot of white paint in the corner of her mouth that gives her life, still takes pride of place, but more of her later.

She hasn't come far, just from the Mauritshuis in The Hague, but sits among unprecedented loans that have made their way to Amsterdam from Washington and New York, Tokyo, Paris and elsewhere for a once-in-a-generation show.