Spiritual and Scientific Contemplation in this Painting About the Moon

A vision of the hope seen on a twilight evening

Two Men Contemplating the Moon (c.1825–30) by Caspar David Friedrich. Oil on canvas. 34.9 × 43.8 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, U.S. Image source The Met

I looked out of my window a few nights ago and saw a perfect crescent moon suspended in the darkening blue sky. Just next to it was the planet Venus, also known as the Evening Star, poised like it was trailing the sliver of moon.

Immediately it made me think of this painting at The Met by Caspar David Friedrich, in which the moon and the Evening Star are likewise positioned in the same portion of the twilight sky.

Every time I look at it, I wonder if this painting leans towards optimism or pessimism. It was made during the Romantic period of art history, when artists like Friedrich considered the place of the individual set within the natural world.

The twisted trees and the boulder-strewn path are more than just picturesque details. They are suggestive of the struggles in life. But does the rising track and the sublime sun-lit moon suggest hope?

Setting and Style

Two Men Contemplating the Moon (c.1825–30) by Caspar David Friedrich. Oil on canvas. 34.9 × 43.8 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, U.S. Image source The Met

Admiring the view are two men, who have stopped on an incline during an evening…