The OGT Daily #49 Romanticism

Currently at the MET Museum in Manhattan there is a beautiful and comprehensive show of the work of the mid-nineteenth century Romantic German painter Casper David Freidrich.  It's well worth visiting. I went yesterday and the crowds were not overwhelming. 

Included are not just paintings but also Freidrich's meticulous sketch books and studies for paintings many of them done in pen and ink and washes of watercolor or sepia toned walnut inks.

Sketch for a larger painting in watercolor

There is even an unfinished canvas of a landscape in which you can see his working process, the geometry, and underpainting required to create his magnificent and highly structured work.  

I first encountered Friedrich when my sister mentioned that a landscape painting of mine reminded her of his work. This was quite a compliment because he was a master of not only landscape but of light and complex shadow. 

Image of a dolman rock covering an ancient tomb - note the eclipse above.

The meticulous attention to detail in his work of every rock and crevice, every leaf and branch within a landscape is astounding. He was part of a community of painters who hiked together into the mountains and depicted aspects of nature as it was the source of divinity and spirituality. Renaissance and pre-Renaissance painting often emphasized the religious iconography over landscape which would be the backdrop for religious fervor.  Freidrich and his contemporaries were also interested in democratic and liberal ideals at a time when the aristocracy still held sway in Germany. 

Although, Freidrich did often depict crosses or old monasteries in his landscapes, he tended to emphasize the play of light in sunsets, moonlight and the hidden depths of shadows as a way to depict aspects of the human experience.  As quoted from the show's narration: the artist's goal should not be to depict nature simply as accurate rendition, but as an interpretation of their soul.  

And his painting are indeed soulful, moving, and inspirational. His ability capture and interpret light through paint has always inspired me both artistically and spiritually.

What inspires your gratitude today?