The Milkmaid by Johannes Vermeer Johannes Vermeer, is well known for his painting “Girl with a Pearl Earring” which we first see in our textbook. Vermeer is known for his use of contrast, value, space, and color. In his painting,“The Milkmaid” Vermeer uses those 4 elements to depict the painting and show emphasis on the important details within the masterpiece itself. In this essay I will be doing an analysis on Johannes Vermeer’s painting known as “The Milkmaid” to show the elements of art he used to emphasize the qualities of his art.
If you look at the painting, the left side of the wall is much darker than the right. You might ask yourself “why is one side darker than the other?” Well, the reason for that is because of contrast; contrast is a drastic difference between such elements as color or value (light/dark). Vermeer uses contrast to create a shadow within the painting itself creating an illusion of the light entering from the window. Not only is contrast present in the wall but also in the teal blue table. If you look at the surface of the tablecloth the table fabric seems to have more of a light contrast, which …show more content…
From the shoulder’s down you can see that Vermeer uses the three primary colors in the maid’s clothing. Her blouse being yellow, her apron being blue and her skirt being red. But if you look closely you can see that the stitching on her blouse is also red. Vermeer not only shows his technique in which he uses the primary colors but also his skill in using secondary colors. If you look at the sleeve of the maid’s blouse you can see that Vermeer use both yellow and blue which are primary colors to blend can make green a secondary color. He’s able to make it seem as though the two primary colors on her sleeve were blending to make the green in the middle of her