This month's National Gallery Painting of the Month is Caspar David Friedrich's Winter Landscape. The interesting thing about this is when I first looked at the page I was taken in by the horizon, the trees and the spires. It wasn't until I read the article that accompanied it that the man leaning against the rock and the crutches strewn about were pointed out to me. I would never have seen them either because that would require me taking my eyes off the horizon!
All of this reminded me of a story my art history teacher told once. She said that she had had a poster of Starry Night over her bed all through college, but it wasn't until she was teaching a class one day that she became aware of the town in the foreground. One of her students mentioned something about it, and she was mortified that she had never noticed the town before. She had never been able to take her eyes off the stars. Even after looking at it every day for years, she had never seen the town. Funny how the eyes and mind work sometimes.
I will cut myself a little slack on this though because the man is rather hard to see, and the crucifix that's hidden in the trees too. You can see it clearly on their page.
National Gallery's Painting of the Month
This is my favourite Friedrich painting, actually one of my favourite paintings period. Unfortunately it was destroyed in one of the world wars, can't remember which one. I love the twisty knobby trees and the architecture, and how the thick black trees in the foreground frame the scene. I'm so glad we have at least an image of it.
Side note: In my art history book, on the opposite page was Goya's Saturn Devouring His Son, which is a painting I HATE with a passion. I had to put a piece of paper over it so I didn't have to look at it. Boy, those where the days before the internet, and the picture in my text book was the only way to see the Monastery. How far we've come.
All of this reminded me of a story my art history teacher told once. She said that she had had a poster of Starry Night over her bed all through college, but it wasn't until she was teaching a class one day that she became aware of the town in the foreground. One of her students mentioned something about it, and she was mortified that she had never noticed the town before. She had never been able to take her eyes off the stars. Even after looking at it every day for years, she had never seen the town. Funny how the eyes and mind work sometimes.
I will cut myself a little slack on this though because the man is rather hard to see, and the crucifix that's hidden in the trees too. You can see it clearly on their page.
National Gallery's Painting of the Month
Winter landscape
This is my favourite Friedrich painting, actually one of my favourite paintings period. Unfortunately it was destroyed in one of the world wars, can't remember which one. I love the twisty knobby trees and the architecture, and how the thick black trees in the foreground frame the scene. I'm so glad we have at least an image of it.
Side note: In my art history book, on the opposite page was Goya's Saturn Devouring His Son, which is a painting I HATE with a passion. I had to put a piece of paper over it so I didn't have to look at it. Boy, those where the days before the internet, and the picture in my text book was the only way to see the Monastery. How far we've come.
Monastery ruins in the snow
Any excuse to post Starry Night. =)
The Starry Night
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