Scene of a Fire
Medium
Etching on paper
Dimensions
Image: 8.4 × 12 cm (3 5/16 × 4 3/4 in.); Plate: 9.1 × 13.6 cm (3 5/8 × 5 3/8 in.); Sheet: 20 × 28.5 cm (7 7/8 × 11 1/4 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
144371
Art Historical Context
Caspar David Friedrich's *Scene of a Fire*1802) is a poignant early etching that captures the raw drama of destruction amid nature's sublime power. Rendered on a modest sheet of paper (20 × 28.5 cm), with a delicate image measuring just 8.4 × 12 cm, this print exemplifies Friedrich's mastery of light and shadow. As a pioneering figure in German Romanticism, Friedrich often evoked profound emotional responses through landscapes that blend the human experience with the vast, uncontrollable forces of the world—here, the flickering blaze piercing the darkness. Created when Friedrich was in his la...
About the Artist
Caspar David Friedrich · 1774–1840
Leading artist of the German Romantic movement. He was particularly known for his symbolic and atmospheric treatment of landscape.