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The painter Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840) is perhaps the poster boy of German Romanticism – an aesthetic and artistic movement that, in the wake of Enlightenment’s rationalism, sought transcendence in the splendour of the natural world. Friedrich was best known for his landscapes, often featuring human figures encountering the overwhelming beauty of nature. And, as Evan Puschak (also known as the Nerdwriter) explores in this video essay, Friedrich often mined beauty from scenes that appeared cold and austere, rather than warm and welcoming. Because of these humbling depictions of people set against nature’s imposing grandeur, Puschak argues that Friedrich is the perfect artist for the final ‘punishing months’ of winter, when, in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere, the warm joys of the holiday season have solidified into a deep, enduring frost.
Video by The Nerdwriter
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Rituals and celebrations
A whale hunt is an act of prayer for an Inuit community north of the Arctic Circle
8 minutes
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Music
The peculiar beauty of a song caught between composition and improvisation
3 minutes
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Rituals and celebrations
A beginner’s guide to a joyful Persian tradition of spring renewal and rebirth
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Love and friendship
Love looks a bit different for a chain-smoking couple in a small apartment
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Metaphysics
Simple entities in universal harmony – Leibniz’s evocative perspective on reality
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Biography and memoir
Passed over as the first Black astronaut, Ed Dwight carved out an impressive second act
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Engineering
A close-up look at electronic paper reveals its exquisite patterns – and limitations
9 minutes
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Architecture
West Africa was once an architectural laboratory. Is it time for a revival?
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Biography and memoir
The unique life philosophy of Abdi, born in Somalia, living in the Netherlands
29 minutes