A Maid Asleep by Johannes Vermeer
Look first

A Maid Asleep

Johannes Vermeer · ca. 1656–57

A Maid Asleep by Johannes Vermeer: Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913

What to notice

The sleeping maid sits behind a table loaded with objects; compare her inward stillness with the open doorway and displaced chair that imply a world just interrupted.

Discover

Vermeer painted A Maid Asleep around 1656–57. The resting woman is separated from the viewer by a table of objects, while an open doorway and displaced chair suggest activity beyond the still, enclosed foreground.

Source institution: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Rights status: Public Domain / The Met Open Access
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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