Around 1657 -1670 · Delft, domestic interior and side light

At Vermeer, a window on the left illuminates letter, pearl, milk and face; light measures space, slows down gesture and transforms intimacy into a pictorial event.

Johannes Vermeer mainly paints quiet interiors of the Delft bourgeoisie. In many of them, the light source is on the left, sometimes visible as a cross-sectioned window, sometimes only guessed by its effects. The light does not fill the room evenly: it hangs the forehead, a sleeve, a pitcher, nails or the edge of a card and leaves the rest in measured darkness. This progression organizes the depth with a precision that is not reduced to an optical device. The window can also contribute to the direction of the scene. A young woman reads a letter near the opening; another adorns herself in front of a mirror; the Milkmaid works under a wall where every accident becomes perceptible. Vermeer combines perspective, observation and compositional adjustments to suspend the action. The outside often remains invisible, but its light makes each object present and gives domestic silence exceptional intensity. The "Windows and light at Vermeer" selection notably compares Lady in Blue reading a letter and The Woman in Blue reading a letter. Its reading favors the material.

At Vermeer, the window often remains on the margins; its light regulates the distance, time and weight of each gesture.