Projects of the Klassik Stiftung Weimar are funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Free State of Thuringia, represented by the State Chancellery of Thuringia, Department of Culture and the Arts.
Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe and Romanticism in Weimar
Klassik Stiftung Weimar opens new exhibition at the Schiller Museum
The special exhibition Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe and Romanticism in Weimar will open its doors on the evening of November 21 at the Schiller Museum in Weimar. It is the final highlight in Germany of the jubilee celebrating the 250th birthday of Caspar David Friedrich (1774–1840), and it is the first time that the collection of Friedrich’s works in Weimar will be shown in its entirety. The exhibition also includes the Karlsruhe Sketchbook (jointly acquired this year by the Schiller Museum and partnering institutions in Berlin and Dresden), a newly discovered drawing in Goethe’s collection, and works by Goethe and contemporary Romantics.
Annette Ludwig, the director of the museums of the Klassik Stiftung Weimar and a member of the exhibition team: “As a young artist, Friedrich highly valued his connection to Weimar. Thanks to the presence of Goethe, an authority in matters of taste, Weimar was an important epicenter of the arts, and it played a role in boosting Friedrich’s career. In preparing the exhibition, we carefully examined our collection of Friedrich’s works with regard to reception, collection history, provenance, restoration and conservation. The research has allowed us to present a variety of new discoveries, including insights into questions that had previously gone unanswered in Friedrich scholarship.”
The exhibition gives visitors a unique look at the beginnings of Friedrich’s artistic career and his charged relationship with the writer and cultural force Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Friedrich’s paintings and drawings testify to the central role assumed by Weimar at the turn of the 19th century. The two drawings that Friedrich entered in the 1805 Weimar Competition were awarded a prize by Goethe, the event’s organizer. This contributed significantly to Friedrich’s prominence. In the years that followed, Friedrich regularly sent paintings and drawings to Weimar, some of which were purchased by the Weimar court. In the first decade of Friedrich’s career, more of his works were shown in Weimar than anywhere else save Dresden. As a result, Goethe knew Friedrich’s works like few others.
Christoph Orth, the exhibition curator and team director: “Early in their acquaintance, Friedrich and Goethe exchanged regularly and met in person several times. Later, the relationship cooled, but they always maintained a mutual regard.”
Friedrich’s perspective allows us to rediscover Goethe the “romantic.” Showing a number of illustrations inspired by Goethe's works, the exhibition asks why his poetry was so appealing to Romantic artists – from Moritz Retzsch and Franz Pforr to Peter von Cornelius and Eugène Delacroix.
Christoph Orth: “Goethe and Romanticism are not a contradiction. On the contrary: Goethe was part of a Europe-wide network of Romantics. His literature inspired their art.
One section of the exhibition presents works owned by Goethe to show the close relationships that the writer cultivated with the Romantics, such as the painters Philipp Otto Runge and Carl Gustav Carus. The show also focuses on the neglected role of women in the networks of Romanticism. Two notable examples are Louise Seidler and Johanna Schopenhauer, both of whom were in close contact with Goethe and Friedrich.
Selected provenance histories shed light on more recent developments, such as the politicization of Caspar David Friedrich's art during the era of National Socialism or the theft of thirteen paintings, including Friedrich’s Weimar Rügen Landscape with the Rainbow, from Schwarzburg Castle in Thuringia shortly before the withdrawal of the American occupying forces in 1945. In addition, multimedia presentations based on conservation and material studies carried out especially for the project provide new insights into Friedrich’s paintings and drawings, such as the well-known work Hutten’s Grave. All of Friedrich’s Weimar works have been newly restored and studied for the exhibition.
Annette Ludwig: “Our exhibition offers aspects that were not addressed in the other major shows of the jubilee, so even Friedrich and Goethe connoisseurs will learn something new.”
Exhibition information:
“Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe and Romanticism in Weimar”
November 22, 2024 – March 2, 2025
Schiller Museum | Schillerstrasse 12 | 99423 Weimar
Opening hours: Tue–Sun, 9:30 am–6:00 pm (special opening times / special guided tours available on request)
Prices: Adults: €6 | General discount rate: €4 | Students (16–20 years): €2 | Children and young people under 16 years: free | Family ticket (valid from Dec. 12, 2024 to Jan. 1, 2025: two adults + any number of children: €10 | One adult + any number of children: €5
You can find the ticket store on the Klassik Stiftung Weimar website. Guided tours are offered every Friday at 2:30 pm and every Sunday at 11:30 am. Tickets for guided tours can be booked here.
The exhibition will be accompanied by the publication of a German-language exhibition catalogue: Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe und die Romantik in Weimar, edited by Annette Ludwig, Christoph Orth, Katharina Krügel, Johannes Grave and Johannes Rößler, Berlin 2024, ISBN 978-3-7757-5789-8, museum price: €29.90, bookstore price: €40.00
Starting on November 22, around twenty objects from Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe and Romanticism in Weimar will be searchable in the “chronicle” section of the Caspar David Friedrich web portal.
On November 21, a comprehensive press kit including digitized works from the exhibition, exhibition photos, restoration videos and the exhibition catalogue will go online (password: Friedrich24).
For more information about Caspar David Friedrich, see the Klassik Stiftung Weimar blog.
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Ausstellungsdaten:
„Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe und die Romantik in Weimar“
22. November 2024 – 2. März 2025
Schiller-Museum | Schillerstraße 12 | 99423 Weimar
Öffnungszeiten: Di-So, 9.30 – 18 Uhr (Sonderöffnung / Sonderführung auf Anfrage möglich)
Preise: Erwachsene 6€ | ermäßigt 4€ | Schülerinnen und Schüler (16-20 Jahre) 2€ | Kinder und Jugendliche unter 16 Jahre frei | Familienticket (gültig vom 21.12.24-6.1.25): 2 Erw. + eine beliebige Anzahl von Kindern: 10€ | 1 Erw. + eine beliebige Anzahl an Kindern 5€
Den Ticketshop finden Sie auf der Website der Klassik Stiftung Weimar. Jeden Freitag um 14.30 Uhr und jeden Sonntag um 11.30 werden geführte Touren angeboten. Tickets dafür können hier gebucht werden.
Zur Ausstellung erscheint der Katalog Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe und die Romantik in Weimar, hg. v. Annette Ludwig, Christoph Orth, Katharina Krügel, Johannes Grave, Johannes Rößler, Berlin 2024, ISBN 978-3-7757-5789-8, Museumspreis 29,00 €, Buchhandelspreis 40,00 €
Parallel zur Ausstellung werden ab dem 22. November 2024 rund 20 Objekte der Ausstellung „Caspar David Friedrich, Goethe und die Romantik in Weimar“ auch in der Chronik des Jubiläumsjahr-Webportals zu Caspar David Friedrich recherchierbar sein.
Ein umfangreiches Pressekit inklusive Digitalisaten von ausgestellten Werken, Ausstellungsfotos, Videos zu Restaurierungsarbeiten sowie dem parallel zur Ausstellung erschienenen Katalog finden Sie hier (Passwort: Friedrich24).
Mehr Informationen rund um Caspar David Friedrich finden Sie auch im Blog der Klassik Stiftung Weimar.