View of the Bay of Naples

In addition to being a medical doctor and philosopher, Carl Gustav Carus was a German Romantic Era painter. Largely self-taught, his appreciation for painting landscapes was founded on his many travels throughout Europe in France, Italy, Scotland, and England. 

View of the Bay of Naples was painted while Carus was staying in the Castel dell'Ovo, a castle located on the Gulf of Naples in Italy. It is obvious that Carus was stricken with romantic enthusiasm when painting this piece. Looking as if we are standing in his room and gazing out of the partially open doorway, we see a lonely guitar, a shadow looming over the doorway, a hazy blue landscape in the distance, and the door hinging open, really giving the viewer an immersive perspective of what Carus was wanting us to feel in this painting. The gloomy, low-light room seems to be symbolic in contrast to the infinite landscape, leaving us edging for adventure into the nautical scenery. His emotion for the beauty of this landscape was evident as Carus is quoted as summing up this view as the blue distance.

- Alexander Smith