Views of Nature (Ansichten der Natur), 2024 - 2025
Selected works
In Views of Nature (2024–2025), De Rode explores the eponymous travelogues of 19th-century naturalist Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859), who is considered the father of ecology. As a product of Romanticism while simultaneously laying the foundation for a scientific discipline, Humboldt serves as an allegorical personification of De Rode’s exploration of the interplay between rational thought and emotional experience in perception. Using excerpts from Ansichten der Natur (1808) as both titles and starting points, De Rode oscillates between analysis and affect, exploring both his surroundings and his inner world.
The cyanotype - often used as a tool for botanical documentation - allows for a counter-narrative. Through toning the cyanotypes with a variety of natural tannins, the works acquire an earthly character that better reflects the natural world while aiming to spark a sense of wonder and mysticism through their subject matter and pictorialism. Aiming for balance in reason and feeling, Views of Nature reflects on Humboldt's plea for sensibility as a potential antidote to modern day alienation.
In the early days of our planet, 2024. Toned cyanotypes in steel frame, 81 x 101 cm.
Processes of nutrition, 2025. Toned cyanotypes in steel frame, 121 x 97 cm.
The disguise of night often brings back these memories of the past, 2025. Toned cyanotypes in steel frame, 61 x 31 cm.
Like a sculptur’d thing of stone II, 2025. Toned cyanotypes in steel frame, 121 x 76 cm.
Close to the arctic circle (at Great Bear Lake), 2024. Toned cyanotype in steel frame, 61 x 46 cm.
One is treated to the sight of the wild, 2024. Toned cyanotype in steel frame, 61 x 46 cm.
In the early days of our planet, 2025. Toned cyanotype in steel frame, 61 x 46 cm.
Physiognomy of plants, 2025. Toned cyanotype in steel frame, 51 x 41 cm.
PDF documentation including the full series available upon request