Caspar David Friedrich
Caspar David Friedrich (September 5, 1774 –
May 7, 1840) was an 19th century German romantic painter. Many critics
consider his work outstanding and consider him one of the most important
German romantic painters.
Born in Greifswald, he studied at Copenhagen from
1794 to 1798. After leaving Copenhagen, he visited several scenic
spots in Germany before choosing to live in Dresden. His famous
painting "Mönch am Meer" (Monk at the Sea) impressed
Karl Friedrich Schinkel (later Prussia's most famous classicist
architect) so much that he gave up painting and took up architecture,
much to the benefit of German and world architecture. Caspar David
Friedrich died in Dresden, Saxony.
His paintings portray the untamed power of nature;
this is in sharp contrast to Enlightenment-era painters such as
Thomas Gainsborough, who used nature to bring out qualities in their
human subjects.
Friedrich's style influenced the painting of the
Norwegian Johann Christian Dahl and perhaps also the painters of
the American Hudson River School, the Rocky Mountain School, and
the New England Luminists.
|