The Dreamer (Ruins of the Oybin Monastery)

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Art may be defined as the illustration of human expressions through painting. Casper David Friedrich is among the greatest artists of his time for the meticulous job he did in creating art. In 1840, at the age of 66 years he created The dreamer (Ruins of the Oybin Monastery) which turned out to be one of his most celebrated works.

The painting was created on a canvas using oil and just like the rest of his work, it uses nature to symbolize romanticism. The dreamer (Ruins of the Oybin Monastery) is a painting that carries a deeper meaning when closely studied. It was a painting created to show nature on its finest. The painting contains a single man, sitting on a window base in the gothic ruins demonstrating a distressed expression. Friedrich might have intended to show the imagery of an abandoned person. His theme in paintings revolved around romance, nature and spiritual experiences of life and The dreamer was no different.

Caspar had created several paintings before he created The dreamer from 1820-1840. The Landscape with Temple Ruins was his first creation which happened in 1797. He later created many more paintings before creation of Ruins of the Oybin Monastery. The theme in this painting was continued in the creation of Chamber Cloth Dreamer. He made a clear illustration of a hero-like figure sitting on the base of a window on a Gothic ruin. It gives a clear image of man have colliding thoughts of both his present and future. Despite being in this devastating state, the painting shows that the man has no one to lean on.

Many German artists have gained motivation to create art from Caspar's work. He is considered to be the greatest German artist of all times, therefore, many paintings created after his time gained inspiration from him. Recent paintings have borrowed his style which involves contemplated figures silhouetted against Gothic ruins, morning mists, night skies and barren trees. The original painting (Ruins of the Oybin Monastery) is owned by The State Hermitage Museum- St Petersburg, Russian Federation St Petersburg. They have been the owners for a long time with the painting being in the same medium, oil on a canvas painting. Caspar was unrecognized throughout his lifetime but his fortunate changed with the emergence of symbolism since he used this unfamiliar style to create his work.

The major style used by Caspar for his paintings, was delivering a message in a calm way. This made his paintings not to get much appreciation at their time of writing. This changed in the 19th century, and all his works gained popularity. During the 18th century, his message that was depicted in stillness did not relate to what was happening at the time. Caspar's work was ahead of its time, hence the less appreciation in the past. This changed later and he is now well celebrated for his unique creativity in creating art.