In Woman in blue reading a letter we observe a similar composition than in A woman holds a letter in her hands, without her facial expression revealing what type of news she is reading in the letter. This painting once again boasts a masterful use of shadows and perspective. We can even observe the faint blue of the woman’s dress reflected on the wall.
Montoya again shines in his detail of the map, as he did in Officer and laughing girl. Woman in blue reading a letter is a painting that is as simple as it is complex, hiding myriad possible stories in one of the painter’s less cluttered compositions.
