Three of Vermeer’s paintings can be seen on the search engine’s homepage on Friday to celebrate an eponymous exhibition that opened on the same day at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC in 1995.

Seen on the Doodle are, The Allegory of Painting (1666-1668), on the left, Woman Writing a Letter, with her Maid (1670-1671), centre, and Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window (1657-1659).

The Doodle can be viewed in many countries including the US, Canada, Iceland, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Japan, Norway, Ireland, France, Italy, Germany, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Greece and Bulgaria.

It’s also showing in the Mena region, appearing on search engines in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Who was Johannes Vermeer?

Vermeer was born in Delft, the Netherlands in 1632. Although not much is known about his early life, historians have veered towards the belief that he first aspired to be a historical painter based on his early works.

However, by the 1650s, his style evolved to feature more intricate symbology with a focus on domestic interior scenes – something that would later become a hallmark of his paintings.

In 1665, he created perhaps his most famous work The Girl with the Pearl Earring, which is currently on display at the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague.

Vermeer died after battling a short illness in 1675. Although there are only 35 universal paintings attributed to him, he has since become known as one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age.

In 2019, his artworks were part of an exhibition at Louvre Abu Dhabi that celebrated Dutch masters. They also featured works by Rembrandt, Jan Lievens, and Frans Hals and were loaned from the Leiden Collection and Musee du Louvre.

What are Google Doodles?

Google Doodles feature sporadically throughout the year, transforming Google's traditional logo into an animation to pay tribute to an important figure or moment in history.

The doodles can also mark seasonal or celebratory events, such as International Women's Day, for example.

Scroll through our gallery below to see other regional Google Doodles from the past.

A Google Doodle celebrating Egyptian actress Karima Mokhtar's 89th birthday. All images: Google
Egyptian writer Ihsan Abdel Quddous
Kuwaiti actor and comedian Abdulhussain Abdulredha's 83rd birthday
UAE National Day 2022 Google Doodle.
Ousha Al Suwaidi was a poetess from the United Arab Emirates.
Prof. Hamed Abdel Fattah Goher was an Egyptian oceanographer, scientist and TV presenter.
Tunisia's Tawhida Ben Cheikh was a pioneer in women's medicine.
Google Doodle of Egyptian actor and director Nour El-Sherif honours him on what would have been his 75th birthday.
Google celebrates Syrian-Egyptian composer and actor Farid Al Atrash with a Google Doodle to mark what would have been his 110th birthday.
Children's author Notaila Rashed is honoured with a special Google Doodle to mark her 86th birthday.
Egyptian actress, producer, writer and filmmaker Bahiga Hafez was born 112 years ago, on August 4.
The Google Doodle for January 20, 2020, celebrates Mufidah Abdul Rahman, Egypt's first female lawyer.
A Google Doodle on June 10, 2019, celebrates Egyptian author Ahmed Khaled Towfik.
Google Doodle honours Persian mathematician, poet and astronomer Omar Khayyam on what would have been his 971st birthday.
Mary Mounib was a renowned actress in the Egyptian cinema scene. Her 114th birthday is marked in a Google Doodle on February 11, 2019.
Egyptian poet Gamila El Alaily is honoured in a Google Doodle on March 20, 2019.
Syrian artist Louay Kayali is the subject of Google's doodle on January 20, 2019.
Egyptian-French singer and actress Dalida is honoured on her birthday by Google Doodle, on January 17, 2019.
Egyptian actress Hind Rostom is celebrated in a Google Doodle on her 87th birthday, on November 12, 2018.
Ibn Sina, one of the greatest thinkers of Islam's golden age, is honoured on August 7, 2018.
A Google Doodle honours Saudi musician Talal Maddah on what would have been his 78th birthday, on August 5, 2018.
A Google Doodle gif marks Egyptian actor Omar Sharif's birthday on April 10, 2018.
Egyptian poet Farouk Shousha is honoured by Google on what would have been his 82nd birthday, on January 9, 2018.
Google celebrates Lebanese singer Sabah's 90th birthday on November 10, 2017.
Egyptian painter Inji Aflatoun's Google Doodle pays homage to her style of bold brushstrokes.
Google celebrates the birthday of Algerian painter Mohammed Khadda, who was born on March 14, 1930.
Lebanese singer-songwriter Melham Barakat is honoured by Google on his birthday.