Wanderer above the Sea of Fog

A man in a dark green overcoat stands on a rock with his back to us, looking out over a sea of fog. The rocks and peaks come from the Elbe Sandstone Mountains in Saxony and Bohemia, sketched by Friedrich outdoors and put together in the studio. Seen from behind, the figure lets the viewer stand in his place, a device Friedrich used often. Little is known about the painting's early history. It was in a Berlin gallery by 1939, and the Hamburger Kunsthalle bought it in 1970.

Medium

Oil on canvas

Size

74.8 x 94.8 cm

Where

Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg

Photo from Wikimedia Commons, public domain.