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Landscape with a Fountain

Benjamin Franklin Bache

1782

ink

paper

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Romanticism 18th Century Landscape

Dominant colour

Landscape with a Fountain is a 1782 ink by Benjamin Franklin Bache, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.

Who painted this?: Benjamin Franklin Bache
When & what style?: 1782 · Romanticism
Where can I see it?: National Gallery of Art

About this work

This sketch shows a quiet garden scene with a small stone fountain at its center. Water trickles from a tall urn into a shallow basin below. Bushes and a few trees frame the scene, while a low wall and a distant bridge add depth. The drawing is simple, with light lines and shading to show shapes. The date on the paper—September 1782—suggests this was made during a time when artists were exploring nature’s details in new ways. The artist used careful strokes to capture light and texture, like the rough bark of trees or the smooth stone of the fountain. Next, check out cross-hatching to see how artists build shadows with layers of lines.