Caspar David Friedrich

Discover the birthplace and paintings of the famous painter.

On September 5, 1774, Caspar David Friedrich was born as the sixth son of the soap maker and candle maker Adolf Gottlieb Friedrich in his parents' residential and commercial building on Langen Strasse. He spent a large part of his childhood there with his family before he went to Copenhagen and Dresden to study art and later paved the way for the Romantic era with his paintings. It was the beautiful city of Greifswald that first inspired him in 1811 to choose cityscapes as a motif for his pictures. Although he settled in Dresden after studying art, he was always drawn back to his homeland. He travels to Rügen and all of Western Pomerania and records his impressions with a brush or pencil.

Caspar David Friedrich Image Trail

Guide to the Caspar David Friedrich pictorial path

Discover Greifswald through the eyes of Caspar David Friedrich – this is possible at the 15 stations of the Caspar David Friedrich Picture Trail. Important life stages, picture motifs and viewpoints can be viewed during the tour. The path leads from the old town via the museum harbor to the Eldena monastery ruins and can be explored on foot or by bike. Visitors can explore the path individually with the help of a brochure or as part of a guided tour. The brochure and information on the picture trail tours are available from the Greifswald Information Center on the market. The picture trail can also be experienced digitally using the CaspAR app. Downloadable in the Google Play Store or by Apple Store.

Caspar David Friedrich Center

The Caspar David Friedrich Center is located in the former residential and commercial building of the Friedrich family and commemorates the great painter and son of the city. On several floors, visitors discover lovingly designed rooms such as the father's soap factory in the historic cellar vault, the family cabinet with the family tree and the Rügen and Eldena room with famous motifs from Friedrich's work. In addition to the permanent exhibition, the Caspar-David-Friedrich-Gallery shows changing exhibitions of contemporary art related to historical romanticism.

» Caspar David Friedrich Center

Pomeranian State Museum

The Caspar-David-Friedrich-Bildweg ends at the Pomeranian State Museum. The former city school houses seven original paintings by the painter as well as a collection of graphics. Friedrich's drawing teacher himself designed the building, which today houses paintings by well-known artists such as Vincent van Gogh and Carl Gustav Carus. In addition, there are exhibitions on the geological and regional history of Western Pomerania in the Pomeranian State Museum.

» Pomeranian State Museum

Monastery ruins Eldena

Caspar David Friedrich made the former Cistercian abbey world-famous and a symbol of Romanticism. As the central motif of some of the paintings by the Greifswald painter, such as "Eldena Monastery Ruins in the Giant Mountains", the monastery ruins attracted attention and were renovated on the occasion of their 800th anniversary. In summer it serves as a backdrop for numerous events and concerts, such as the Eldena Jazz Evenings.

» Monastery ruins Eldena

Caspar David Friedrich Monument

The bronze sculpture was made in 2009 by the Lübeck sculptor Claus-Martin Götz. Since 2010 it has been on Lappstrasse and thus in the immediate vicinity of the Caspar David Friedrich Center and the Greifswald Cathedral, Friedrich's baptismal church. The sculpture was created through a private initiative. The monument was financed by the Schwerin Ministry of Education and thanks to numerous donations from citizens, companies and institutions in the region.