Caspar David Friedrich --- Wanderer Above the Sea Mist

Right off the bat when I took my first glance at Wanderer Above the Sea Mist, I noticed the painting conveyed the individualism. Clearly, the main focus of the painting is this single man atop this mountain, gazing across the landscape. One predominant characteristic of Romanticism was the rise of the individual/dreamer. In Friedrich's painting, we see a single man that has risen to the highest peak of a mountain or hill above the clouds. For me, I got the sense that the man is looking out onto this vast and endless mountainous scene right in front of him and is dreaming, according to the romantic individual, of ceaseless opportunities and potential that come his way. Also, I thought this connects to the music of the nineteenth century. A lot of romantic music focused on the solos in music, specifically piano solos. In addition, one of the key themes of romantic music is individual feeling. Through the use of solos, a single performer is able to express his/her own unique thoughts and emotions on an idea presented in a musical composition.

Another Romantic ideal I found prominent was the glorification of nature. During this time period, nature was portrayed through awesome, powerful, and even horrifying elements. This painting in particular, most of the aspects that I examined I found to be somewhat ominous and eery. Personally, I found the presence of the clouds/haze cover the majority of the landscape to be unclear, unsettling and auspicious. The clouds/haze masking the environment in front of the individual gave me the sense that what the dreamer is searching deeply for answers through the white veil blanketing the setting and the man's thoughts.

One last Romantic ideal I explored was the pursuit of spiritual self-awareness. Reverting back to what I said before in regards to the man trying to search for answers, I believe that those answers that he is searching for are about himself. He is yearning for the unknown and the unknowable. My guess at what the man might be thinking about his maybe his health. I'm not entirely sure if what he has is a cane or a walking stick, but assuming it's a cane, I felt as if he is pondering about his future and how his health will affect it and is dreaming of good fortune later in his life.