Landscape Study. Kroken at Sogn, Norway 1826

J.C. Dahl made this landscape study of Kroken at Sogn, Norway, using oil on canvas. Dahl was instrumental in establishing painting as a means of promoting Norwegian nationhood. He focused on the stark beauty of the local landscape as emblematic of the unique character of the Norwegian people, in contrast to the aristocratic culture of Denmark, which Norway was then a part of. In visual terms, the high vantage point and dramatic natural formations create a feeling of sublime grandeur. The figures are small and rendered in simple strokes, giving the sense that they are dwarfed by the natural environment. To understand Dahl's work, we need to look at travel writing, political pamphlets, and the institutional history of art academies in Northern Europe at the time. These will give you a richer sense of how art gives visual form to political and cultural values.