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Discuss art, life, culture and creativity from the comfort of your own home at the QAGOMA Members Virtual Book Club or join us at one of the meetings at the Gallery. The titles on the reading list until November connect to, contextualise and discuss the ideas presented in ‘European Masterpieces from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York’, organised by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in collaboration with the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art and Art Exhibitions Australia. Girl in Hyacinth Blue (1999), by Susan Vreeland Session 1: Wed 24 Nov, 3.00pm | Virtual Session 2: Thu 25 Nov, 10.30am | On-site SOLD OUT Session 3: Sat 27 Nov, 3.00pm | On-site SOLD OUT A professor invites a colleague from the art department to his home to see a painting that he has kept secret for decades. The professor swears it is a Vermeer – why has he hidden this important work for so long? The reasons unfold in a series of stories that trace ownership of the painting back to World War Two and Amsterdam, and still further back to the moment of the work’s inspiration. As the painting moves through each owner’s hands, what was long hidden quietly surfaces, illuminating poignant moments in human lives. Vreeland’s characters remind us, through their love of the mysterious painting, how beauty transforms and why we reach for it, what lasts, and what in our lives is singular and unforgettable. On-site Book Club: $12 Members / $17 Members' Guests (includes refreshments) Virtual Book Club: Free for Members / $5 Members' Guests Members receive 20% off current and past Book Club titles from the QAGOMA Store. 'European Masterpieces' Reading List -The Goldfinch (2013) by Donna Tartt -The Vanishing Man: In Pursuit of Velázquez (2016) by Laura Cumming -The Birth of Venus (2003) by Sarah Dunant -Metropolitan Stories: A Novel (2021) by Christine Coulson -Sudden Death (2013) by Álvaro Enrigue, translated by Natasha Wimmer -Girl in Hyacinth Blue (1999) by Susan Vreeland