At the Edge of the Wood 1915

Harald Giersing painted 'At the Edge of the Wood' with oil on canvas, inviting us into a space where nature's symbols weave a complex tapestry of meaning. The forest's edge, a threshold, evokes the ancient motif of the 'locus terribilis' – a place of both fear and revelation. Trees, reaching skyward, have long symbolized the connection between the earthly and the divine, a concept echoed in ancient tree worship and the mythical World Tree, Yggdrasil. We might recall the dark, enchanted forests of Northern Renaissance art or even the Romantic landscapes of Caspar David Friedrich, where nature becomes a mirror of the soul. The shifting light and shadows play upon our emotions, stirring a deep, primal recognition of nature’s power. This is not merely a depiction of trees; it is an echo of our collective unconscious, a reminder of the enduring, cyclical relationship between humanity and the natural world.