You have probably seen this picture, right?
Das Gemälde "Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer" from here
It has morphed into new forms in many different memes. But do you know about the painter who created this? Well, this book is about him, and his improbable reception after his death. I first listened to the audiobook and then bought a physical copy.
Casper David Friedrich was born in 1774 in a German town called Greifswald near the Eastern Sea, and died in 1840 in Dresden. Most probably, Friedrich would be surprised by his afterlife reception, and that anyone remembers his work. He never signed any of his paintings, and was, indeed, for a long time after his death forgotten.
Das Gemälde "Der Mönch am Meer" from here
In 1810, King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia purchased “The Monk by the Sea” at an exhibition in Berlin. His son, the young crown prince Friedrich Wilhelm (later Friedrich Wilhelm IV), was deeply moved by the painting and remained attached to it for the rest of his life. The painting has something unsettling about it, a melancholy.
The book tells many other interesting stories: How Friedrich came to depict people exclusively as Rückenfiguren (figures seen from behind). How Friedrich is celebrated by the Nazis, left alone by Stalin, and disliked by the 68ers. How he is forgotten around 1901, but then rediscovered. Many of his paintings have not survived the passage of time. The now iconic 'Wanderer above the Sea of Fog' was virtually unknown during his lifetime. It tells how Friedrich admired Goethe, but never had this admiration reciprocated. It tells about a Nordic Friend who lived above him in Dresden: He paints with open windows, Friedrich prefers his closed. It tells how Friedrich inspired Walt Disney. And many more stories.
I found a quick, better-told article about him here.