Why did the Romantic painters loved to depict ruins in their artworks?

During the Romanticism period, painters looked for inspiration in different motifs. Some were inspired by historical events, such as — The Massacre at Chios by Eugene Delacroix and The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya. Others displayed their admiration of nature and its powers, but some were fascinated by the ruins of castles, churches, or other buildings.

A great example of it is the painting of Caspar David Friedrich — The Abbey in the Oakwood (1810). This painting features very dark scenery and a choice of colors. It’s a very cold and gloomy artwork. You can see a group of monks carrying a coffin toward the ruins of a Gothic church.

There is almost no light around, and tones add to the dark atmosphere. Since the Medieval period was closely related to the Catholic Church and religion, many Romanticism painters saw ruins as a symbolic sign that the world had changed.

Friedrich was known for a use of philosophical and religious motifs in his works, and the ruins in this painting clearly represent the topic of death and the following afterlife. The iconic German painter was well-acquainted with it since the early days.

He experienced the loss of several of his family members at a young age. Depiction of ruins became one of his features since other works also had ruins as a key figure in the painting — Ruins of Eldena Abbey in the Riesengebirge (1834), Hutten’s Grave (1823), The Temple of Juno in Agrigento (1830), Ruins of Eldena, near Greifswald (1825) and others.

A similar approach had the English painter John Constable. You can see his work — Hadleigh Castle, The Mouth of the Thames (1828). It also carries a deeply personal motif that involves death. The creation of this artwork was at the same time when Constable’s wife Maria suffered from an illness that eventually took her. The painter felt devastated by the loss of his wife, and it is not hard to guess what symbolism ruins had in his perspective.

Painters like Adam Gorczynski used the ruins as a kind of nostalgic feature. Those symbolized the long-lost glory of their home and had some nationalistic undertones.

Ruins of Kamieniec Castle in Odrzykoń (1837). Oil on paperboard, 46 cm x 56 cm.

It is no secret that many European countries had Romanticism as a part of the revival of their national identity. Poland and Germany are few to be mentioned. Poland lived through its dream of regaining independence, while Germany was going through the revolts and the idea of the unification of all the German lands.

Of course, there were painters who had neither — symbolic nor personal experiences attached to the depictions of ruins. Some added ruins as a beautiful element to improve the atmosphere around the overall landscape. Others were simply fascinated by the long-lost monuments of the past and tried to depict them as detailed as they could. A tribute to the architecture of the past.

Overall, the Romanticism movement changed the perception of Medieval culture and heritage. Due to the various dark periods during Medieval, later generations had a kind of negative perception about it. However, since most of the nations had a lot of memorable events during that period, it brought back nostalgia. Romanticism was a movement that valued a strong display of feelings in the artworks, and nostalgia had to be amongst those.

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