Jomfru Maria ved fontænen 1490 - 1510

Monogrammist MZ created "Virgin Mary by the Fountain" with pen and black ink sometime in the 15th century. Notice how the composition is structured around contrasting textures and linear forms. The Virgin's robes are rendered with dense cross-hatching, creating rich folds and shadows that give volume and weight. This contrasts sharply with the smoother, more delicately drawn figures of Mary and the Christ Child. The fountain, positioned to the right, anchors the composition with its geometric solidity, its sharp lines opposing the organic curves of the figures. Water flows into a glass carafe, perhaps symbolizing purity, while the distant landscape blurs with atmospheric perspective, subtly destabilizing the immediate foreground. These formal elements underscore the artwork's semiotic structure: water as a signifier of purity, the fountain as a symbol of divine provision, and Mary herself as the embodiment of grace. Through a detailed interplay of line and form, Monogrammist MZ invites us to consider not only the aesthetic beauty but the complex interplay of meaning inherent in this piece.