Caspar David Friedrich: Nature As Revelation

One of the most revered artists of the early 19th century and the leading figure of the German Romantic movement, Caspar David Friedrich (1774–1840) is renowned for highly symbolic compositions that reveal his extraordinary sensitivity to the cycles of nature, the effects of seasonal changes, and the ephemeral qualities of light. This beautiful book focuses on Friedrich's extraordinary works on paper: landscapes characterized by their atmosphere of isolation and stillness, rural cityscapes, and penetrating self-portraits.

The featured works reveal Friedrich's experimentations with pictorial devices that are prominent as well in his painterly oeuvre. One such is the rückenfigur, an isolated individual seen from behind who is contemplating the landscape and who emphasizes both man's private search for meaning and the unity of humanity with nature. Noted scholar Thomas Kellein explicates this and other topics, including the political significance of Friedrich's drawings, the artist's designs for the Marienkirche in Stralsund, and some recently discovered Friedrich drawings.