TODAY'S FEATURED POST

Remembering

Arnie Fenner

TCM remembers some of the creatives we lost in 2025, including Robert McGinnis, Drew Struzan, and Jules Feiffer among many other influential and inspiring greats. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF8_YcxZp6U[/embed]

READ MORE

EVERYDAY ORIGINAL

The End is the Beginning

YESTERDAY’S POST

Image

Rückenfigur

Lauren Panepinto

September 4, 2025 - I didn't know there was a word for this until recently, but of course there is, and of course it's German. Rückenfigur (literally "back-figure") is a compositional device in painting, graphic art, photography, and film. A person is seen from behind in the foreground of the image, contemplating the view before them, and is a means by which the viewer can identify with the image's figure and then recreate the space to be conveyed. (from Wikipedia) The textbook example of this is this image is Caspar David Friedrich's Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog: And in fact, I only heard the term Rückenfigur at all because there was just a Caspar David Friedrich exhibit at The Met. He loved this device and it shows up in his work a number of times:   Obviously Friedrich…

READ MORE

POSTS BY CATEGORY

ART

ARTICLES

EDUCATION

EVENTS

INSPIRATION

INTERVIEWS

REVIEWS

RECENT COMMENTS

Recent Comments

ABOUT MUDDY COLORS

Muddy Colors is a collective of more than 20 artists, dedicated to providing a free, online resource for aspiring and professional artists alike.

With a library of thousands of articles, and a new one being posted each day, Muddy Colors is the largest educational website dedicated to the Fantastic Arts.

SUPPORT US ON PATREON

We are using Patreon as an opportunity to ask our readers for support in our endeavors.

These funds will be used to provide better content for our readers, maintain website expenses, and support aspiring artists through Muddy Colors programs and scholarships.