The Love Letter<\/b> (Dutch:\u00a0De liefdesbrief<\/i>) is a 17th-century genre painting\u00a0by\u00a0Jan Vermeer. The painting shows a servant maid handing a letter to a young woman with a\u00a0cittern. The tied-up\u00a0curtain\u00a0in the foreground creates the impression that the viewer is looking at an intensely private, personal scene.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0diagonals\u00a0on the chequered floor create the impression of depth and\u00a0three-dimensionality. The fact that it is a\u00a0love letter\u00a0that the woman has received is made clear by the fact that she is carrying a lute. The lute was a symbol of love – often carnal love. This idea is further reinforced by the\u00a0slippers\u00a0at the very bottom of the picture. The removed slipper was another symbol of sex. The two\u00a0paintings\u00a0on the wall are also significant.<\/p>\n
The lower painting is of a stormy\u00a0sea, a clear metaphor for tempestuous love. Above it is a landscape painting of a traveler on a sandy road. This may refer to the absence of the man who is writing to the lady. The colors blue and gold are important in the composition of the painting – the gold is located on the woman’s dress, the top of the fireplace, and many of the objects, which complements the blue on the floor, the maid’s dress, the picture frames, etc.<\/p>\n
Source: Wikipedia<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Love Letter (Dutch:\u00a0De liefdesbrief) is a 17th-century genre painting\u00a0by\u00a0Jan Vermeer. The painting shows a servant maid handing a letter to a young woman with a\u00a0cittern. The tied-up\u00a0curtain\u00a0in the foreground creates the impression that the viewer is looking at an intensely private, personal scene. The\u00a0diagonals\u00a0on the chequered floor create the impression of depth and\u00a0three-dimensionality. The … Continue reading The Loveletter<\/span>