The Virgin with the Blessing Child in a Landscape
1515
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1515
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
This black-and-white print shows a woman holding a small child, both sitting under a tree. Behind them, a distant village sits by a river, with mountains in the far background. The woman’s face is calm, and the child reaches out toward her. Trees, bushes, and flowers fill the scene, while lines crisscross the sky and water. The print uses tiny etched lines to build up shadows and texture—this is called cross-hatching. It’s not a painting but a detailed engraving, where the artist carved lines into a metal plate. Next, check out how cross-hatching works in other prints.
