German Romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich died in poverty after his works fell out of fashion, but on his 250th birthday he is the artist of the moment.

 

 

 

 

Friedrich was a pioneer who still shapes the visual world of today. His most famous painting Wanderer over a Sea of Fog is a favorite of the selfie generation.

 

 

 

 

Friedrich's works focus on loneliness and the sublime and feature transformative encounters with spiritualised nature. They often allude to specific locations but are actually fantasy compositions.

 

 

 

 

Friedrich-mania explained with reference to ten of his most famous paintings. Kitsch or Kunst? And why does the artist always depict people from behind?