A Mirror of Nature. Nordic landscape painting, 1840-1910

The painted landscape is not just a reflection of its subject, but also the result of a complex process of interpretation and selection, influenced by the ideas and worldview of its time. An artistic depiction of nature thus not only mirrors the landscape itself, but in addition the dreams and conceptions of the age in which it is created. The introduction article in this book presents some of the main exhibits as well as the historical frameworks-both in terms of art and intellectual history- around the exhibition's artists and works. The landscapes have been grouped under the following five headings: "Nordic Sublime", "Close to Nature", "In the Open Air", "Evocative Landscape" and "Landscapes of the Mind". In terms of both chronology and content, the individual sections largely follow the development of Nordic landscape painting from the early 19th century to he decades surround the beginning of the 20th century. The text will introduce the themes which are subsequently supplemented and expanded on in five themed articles.