We bring you historical iconic works that never lose their universality and inspire even today’s advanced digital art, together with their details. This time our focus is on Der Wanderer Über Dem Nebelmeer (Journey Above the Clouds).
This work, which was revealed by Caspar David Friedrich and is over 200 years old, contains different details that will amaze you. Without further ado, let’s take a look at what’s hiding behind the work.
Let’s move from the visible to the invisible. What details caught your eye at first glance?
As we saw above, we can divide the work into three parts. In this context, at the top is the sky, in the middle is our main character and landforms inspired by the regions of Saxony and Bohemia, and at the bottom is the platform on which the character stands.
Even if the work is not moving, the character’s flying hair and the strong movement of the fog in the middle can transfer the power of the moment to the viewer.
In addition, the character has a very calm stance, despite standing in a fairly high position.
The vegetation on the mountains in the background also adds detail to the landscape overflowing with nature.
Now let’s look a little deeper
The mountains, which extend below the character’s shoulder level and are not very sloping, make the character’s position even more emphatic.
Not only that, look at the platform the character is standing on. This platform, which covers the lower sides of the canvas, converges at the point where the character is.
Thus, the location of the character is indicated once again.
Well, that’s all, “Look, Here!” so to speak, why does the character who is brought into our eyes turn his back on us?
Here is one of the points where the work really deepens. First of all, let’s answer this question.
In the technique known as Rückenfigur, the backs of the characters are turned towards the person looking at the work.
The merging of the mountains at shoulder level offered you the same viewpoint as the main character. Then, the platform on which the character stands brought you on the same level as him.
So now you see what he saw. In a way, it was you.
At this point, we move on to the comment part of the work. Of course, there are ideas that are considered appropriate by many experts who research the history of art, but before they do, it is necessary to know what it is basically.
We see clearly that the character here is on a journey, just like us.
- Everyone’s problem is different of course…
Sometimes in life you stop and ask, “Where am I going?” we can think. Along this journey, however, we may encounter countless obstacles.
In fact, sometimes we focus so much on an obstacle that it seems like everything else will flow smoothly once it is gone.
For a high school student, we can show the university exam as an example.
In 4 years or in the last year, this exam causes so much stress that students think “if I get off this, nothing else can make me tired”.
But that big day comes one way or another, and after the exam is passed, the students find themselves on top, just like our character in this work.
Yes, they have passed the test and are now higher and more comfortable than those who came after them. But even though they are on the hill, they are foggy in front of them, just like in our work in question.
So the journey did not end here as it was thought.
The feeling of emptiness that comes after the exam is also due to this. Students wait in the face of an aimlessly uncertain future when the exam suddenly disappears because the focus is solely on that subject.
But after the whole process has passed, the high school phase of life is skipped and the university starts. And there, different obstacles are overcome and the hills are climbed and foggy landscapes are seen again.
It goes on like this.
For this reason, everyone carries their own experiences and thoughts to this painting. This is what makes it unique
Maybe you’ve seen someone who will coolly let himself down, maybe you’ve seen a man defying nature alone.
Maybe you’ve noticed a man standing still and admiring the splendor of nature. All of these are shaped by the person viewing the work.
Now that we’ve grasped the basics, let’s look at the commonly held notions about the meaning of the work.
Man’s helplessness against nature
We do not see the face of our character, who has a very stylish suit and walking stick, but when we look at his relaxed stance, it is thought that he watches nature with admiration. Even though we can’t see his face, it’s clear that he’s immersed in the scenery.
In addition, although the character is high, both the fog in front of him and the clouds at the top of the canvas, which appear much higher than our character, again emphasize the superiority of nature.
This makes sense when we consider that Caspar David Friedrich has produced works for the romanticism movement.
The main character may represent a soldier
The character is also thought to be Colonel Friedrich Gotthard von Brincken from the German army fighting against Napoleon.
Her dark green outfit and hair color also reinforce this possibility. The colonel in question is thought to have died in 1813 or 1814.
Those who state that this work was revealed in 1818 argue that this work was made to honor the colonel.
Many innovations that emerged after the victory over Napoleon:
The rapid spread of ideas such as nationalism, the incredible acceleration of technological developments and the resulting innumerable discoveries and inventions have undoubtedly opened many new doors for us.
Of course, these developments were good for humanity, but when you go down to the individual situation, a lot of uncertainty welcomes you in the people of the period.
“I wonder what will happen next, where are we headed?” It’s such an uncertainty. Victory over Napoleon was difficult and successful, but what next?
Finally, we have a controversial conclusion: ‘The future of Nazi Germany’.
As the Nazis used works (mostly landscapes) that had the potential to glorify the order they established, for propaganda purposes, this painting was not liked very much, especially after the Second World War, and became associated with the Nazis.
Fortunately, this relationship was cleared with the contribution of objective comments in the following years.
After our bonus reveal, we look at the reason for the artist’s tendency to produce depressive works. Actually the two are linked
Caspar David Friedrich was born on September 5, 1774, in Pomerania, in what is now northeastern Germany, though then part of Sweden. He had a father who made a living by making soap and candles.
He lost his mother when he was only 7 years old and one of his sisters when he was 8 years old. At the age of 13, she witnessed her brother drown and die while playing on a frozen lake.
It is believed that Friedrich’s exposure to such traumatic losses at an early age was the cause of the melancholy in his works. Speaking of melancholy, it should be noted that the work attracted attention after Friedrich passed away.
When you want to visit this work, you will have to go to the Hamburger Kunsthalle, the art museum in Germany, specifically Hamburg. Apart from this, we would like to see your thoughts about the work or what you want to add in the comments section.
Posters running in line with the artwork:
Sources: caspardavidfriedrich.org, Art Review, Prof. Dr. Marcus Graf/KAFA TV, Cultural Studies, Pieces of Art, Artble, Baltic Light
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