In this artwork, how is the Description discussed?
The painting shows the view from the peak at Stalheim over the Nærøy Valley towards the sugarloaf-shaped peak of Jordalsnuten in late afternoon sunshine, framed by peaks and a rainbow. The sun shines on a small village near the centre. Dahl has clearly delineated figures and buildings even in the distance, creating "a world in miniature". One of his purposes was realism; the other was to capture the glory and magnificence of the mountains, and associated with that, of his country's culture. In this evocation of grandeur the painting prefigures later US landscapes, in particular Church's Rainy Season in the Tropics (1866), which has a similar crowning rainbow. The rainbow itself, a symbol of reconciliation, peace, and in Christianity of God's grace, was also frequently used by Joseph Anton Koch and by Dahl's friend and associate Caspar David Friedrich.
Church Stalheim Caspar David Friedrich sugarloaf realism Nærøy Valley Joseph Anton Koch Nærøy God's grace