«What I love most is the sun, after the sun spring, then the springs that gush crystal clear from the rocks in the Alps, that trickle in the veins of Earth and flow like the blood in our own veins.» This diary entry, written by Giovanni Segantini on January 1st, 1890, reads like the motif of our painting. The sun, the Alps, the crystal-clear water and especially the springs, here in the form of a fountain, play the lead roles. Quite in general, water plays a special role in Segantini's thinking and work. It not only represents the basis of life, but also is a symbol of the eternal cycle between growth and decay. Just as water falls to the earth as rain, disperses there and rises again as vapour, all beings, including mankind, are subject to cyclical processes. Thus, man and nature are always connected – and in this painting Segantini shows us this connection quite directly by the act of drinking.

Although exhibited during his lifetime, the unsigned painting was evidently not quite finished. This is indicated by the merely underlaid skin tone of the figure and some only roughly structured clouds. Nevertheless, the work radiates great harmony, not only in terms of motif but also in terms of design. Its structure into different zones and the fountain carved from a trunk emphasize its horizontal orientation. Only the female figure and the highest mountain peak on the right set vertical accents. The lack of perspective vanishing lines and the avoidance of dynamic depth effects lend the composition a great deal of spaciousness and tranquillity, while light and colours provide additional clarity and luminosity.

The painting is executed in the Divisionist style typical of Segantini's late work. He applied the colours in thin lines, as unmixed as possible, so that they retain their luminosity and, interacting with adjacent colours on the canvas, make the picture literally vibrate. The painter sometimes also applied gold and silver dust to enhance the colours, as in our picture on the small mountain ridge on the right, placed in front of the peaks. By working through the entire picture surface in this style, the artist created a unifying element in terms of painting technique, to which everything is subject and in which everything belongs together. Thus, the formal and thematic elements are united in a great celebration of the nature of the Alps and the people surrounded by it.