Yellow bodice

**Yellow, structure, and luminosity.** The maid’s yellow bodice forms the warm chromatic center of the painting, set against the ultramarine-blue apron and sleeves. Vermeer’s fabrics are not rendered as flat color fields: small modulations, seams, shadowed edges, and highlights build the garment’s weight. The yellow also stabilizes the figure’s torso, helping the viewer read the maid as a solid, grounded presence within the room. **References:** Rijksmuseum collection record and Vermeer exhibition texts; Metropolitan Museum of Art essay; technical color discussions summarized in major Vermeer scholarship.

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