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Recently, I found myself spellbound while watching \”Girl With a Pearl Earring.\” This film, based on the excellent Tracy Chevalier novel, is a fictional account of the history behind Vermeer\’s famous painting of the same name. The novel revolves around a servant girl, Grete, who became a secret assistant to the painter in his studio. In one scene, Vermeer accidentally glimpses Grete with her hair uncovered. The moment is electric. Grete, like all women of her social station, covered her hair at all times. It was as if Vermeer had caught her unclothed.