Wanderer of the Sea of Fog by Casper David Friedrich 1818
Its funny how as humans we love to document and portray our lives in a way that promotes our best selves to the world. This is not just a new idea that was born because of the existence of social media. The romanticism era is evidence that people gravitate towards the dreamy, beautiful aspects of everyday life. Imagery has such power in this way. This painting is strikes me the most out of the early beginnings of the transition from paint on canvas to the camera because I have captured this image within my own life so many times. I love that you cannot usually see the person’s face, it gives it a sense of universality and imagination. I could picture myself on that cliff, amongst the fog, gazing out to this incredible expanse before me, feeling free and immersed in the grand presence of the wilderness. All my senses are keenly aware of my surroundings, the smell of the earth and the trees, the chilled mountain breeze across my skin, my feet maybe sore from a hike but lighter than air, full of energy, rejuvenated by the sounds of the world happening and living around me. I am a tiny piece of something so incredible and huge and grand…I feel content in my insignificance. That is how this painting speaks to me. It takes me back to the moments of absolute physical exhaustion but complete happiness. Time slows down. You take it all in. It takes me back to those moments of utter surrender to the magnitude of adventure and having faith in the process of doing hard things for the best reasons that sometimes can’t be explained. That is why people love imagery. Because it brings those words and emotions that are difficult to explain and manifests them into something tangible and visually memorable.
Guadelupe Mountains October 2017 (McKenna Watson)