Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine with Saint Jerome

Francesco Vanni

1586

chalk

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Renaissance Renaissance Religious

About this work

This drawing shows two figures standing close together, surrounded by tangled lines. The background is a light brown paper with a grid of tiny squares drawn in brown ink. The lines around the figures look like roots or vines, swirling around their feet and hands. The artist used only black chalk to create deep shadows and texture, making the figures stand out against the plain paper. The grid suggests this might have been a study for a larger work. Look up cross-hatching to see how artists build up shadows with lines.