Caspar David Friedrich Country The Genius of German Romanticism

Study Tour Overview

"Close your bodily eye, so that you may see your picture first with your spiritual eye, then bring to the light of day that which you have seen in the darkness so that it may react on others from the outside inwards."

Like no other, the deeply moving landscape paintings of Caspar David Friedrich exemplify the German Romantic Age. Born in 1774 in the Pomeranian harbour town of Greifswald, Friedrich studied in Copenhagen until 1798, when he settled in Dresden. There he led a quiet life, interrupted only by excursions to the mountains south-east of the city or to the coast of Pomerania, single-mindedly pursuing his personal journey towards a spiritual landscape. Intensely introspective and often melancholic, Friedrich relied on deep contemplation to summon mentally the images he was to put on canvas. Shortly after the painter's death in 1840, his contemplative depictions of stillness were seen as the products of a bygone era, as Germany was eagerly embracing the industrial age. His rediscovery began in the early 20th century and today Caspar David Friedrich is seen as an icon of the German Romantic movement, a painter of international importance. In the great museums of Berlin and Hamburg we will study masterpieces by Friedrich and his contemporaries, while from the proud Hanseatic city of Stralsund we will explore Friedrich's homeland, characteristic Brick Gothic churches of the Baltic coast, Friedrich's charming natal town of Greifswald and the dramatic chalk cliffs of Rügen, Germany's largest island.

 

Programme Details

Day 1	Late morning flight at c.11 o'clock with British Airways from London Heathrow to Berlin. Adjacent to the Palace of Charlottenburg lies the New Pavilion, built by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. This handsome Italianate villa houses an outstanding collection of paintings by Caspar David Friedrich and his contemporaries. From there continue to your five-star hotel. First of two nights in Berlin.
Day 2	Morning walk to Museum Island to study the outstanding collection of Caspar David Friedrich paintings of the Alte Nationalgalerie. Works include the iconic Monk By The Sea and Abbey in the Oakwood. Both paintings were bought by King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia for his collection in 1810, shortly after the death of his much-loved, wife, Queen Luise. At the Kupferstichkabinett, the Collection of Prints and Drawings, drawings by Caspar David Friedrich will be presented to us in a private viewing. Second of two nights in Berlin.
Day 3	By coach from Berlin to Stralsund. En route we will stop at Neustrelitz. This charming town with its pleasure garden was created in 1701 from the drawing board as capital of the newly established duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. After lunch, the coach takes us to Hohenzieritz. Here, Prince Karl Ludwig of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, brother of the English 'Queen of Botany', Sophie Charlotte, commissioned the English landscapist Archibald Thomson to create one of the first German landscape gardens in the English style. The Neoclassicist castle was the favourite summer residence of the afore-mentioned Luise, Queen of Prussia, and Karl Ludwig's daughter. Three rooms have been dedicated to the young monarch’s memory. Continue to Stralsund and your four-star hotel where the remaining five nights of the tour will be spent.
Day 4	Morning walk through Stralsund: much of the wealth of this Hanseatic town was invested in monumental churches, magnificent gabled merchant houses and a grandiose town hall – spectacular examples of north German Brick Gothic. Much of this UNESCO World Heritage Site has remained unchanged for hundreds of years. After lunch, coach excursion to the island of Rügen. The charming town of Putbus, was transformed into a dazzling Classicist residence of a princely family in the first half of the nineteenth century. From there, continue to Sassnitz via the seaside resort of Binz. Boat trip along the coast to see the world famous chalk cliffs featuring in some of Caspar David Friedrich’s paintings.
Day 5	Greifswald is the hometown of Caspar David Friedrich who returned there regularly throughout his life. The unmistakable silhouette of the city featuring the leaning tower of St. Nicholas was thought by Friedrich to be the most beautiful in North Germany. It was painted by him and fellow Romantics time and again. Our exploration of Greifswald will also take us to to the Pomeranian State Museum for more Caspar David Friedrich paintings. Just outside the city lie the monastic ruins of Eldena Abbey. Its ivy-covered remains would probably not have survived if it were not for Friedrich's paintings such as Ruins of Eldena Abbey in Berlin’s Alte Nationalgalerie. This particular work was acquired by the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV who initiated a campaign to preserve the haunting building.
Day 6	All day coach excursion to Güstrow. The castle with its elaborate decoration was built for Duke Ulrich of Mecklenburg and is one of the few remaining buildings of the Renaissance in northern Germany – as is the pleasure garden whose intricate design follows Italian models: after recent restoration low box-tree hedgerows border beds of lavender and colourful summer flowers. The Romanesque to Gothic cathedral, founded as early as 1226, is a veritable treasure chest including a rare example of a late Gothic winged altar staging 32 statues of saints, Renaissance tombs and moving works of the German expressionist sculptor Ernst Barlach.
Day 7	Boat trip to the Island of Hiddensee, situated in the spectacular Western Pomerania Lagoon National Park. Its natural beauty –  endless low skies, wide beaches and myriads of sea birds –  evokes Caspar David Friedrich’s inspirational visits to the area. On this car-free island, a carriage will take us to the village of Kloster. From there return to Stralsund for some free time.
Day 8	Coach transfer from Stralsund to Hamburg. After lunch at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, we will conclude our study of German Romanticism by enjoying some of Caspar David Friedrich's most impressive and powerful paintings such as The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog andThe Sea of Ice. Early evening flight from Hamburg with British Airways scheduled to land at London Heathrow at c.7.40 pm.