Edvard Munch

December 12, 1863 - January 23, 1944

Edvard Munch was a Norwegian painter and printmaker whose intensely evocative treatment of psychological themes built upon some of the main tenets of late-Nineteenth Century Symbolism and greatly influenced German Expressionism in the early-Twentieth Century. One of his most well-known works is The Scream of 1893.

When Munch died his remaining works were bequeathed to the city of Oslo, which built the Munch Museum at Toyen (opened in 1963). The museum holds a collection of approximately 1,100 paintings, 4,500 drawings, and 18,000 prints, the broadest collection of his works in the world. The Munch Museum serves as Munch’s official estate, and has been active in responding to copyright infringements, as well as clearing copyright for the work, such as the appearance of Munch’s The Scream in a 2006 M&M’s advertising campaign. The United States copyright representative for the Munch Museum and the Estate of Edvard Munch is the Artists Rights Society.

Munch’s art was highly personalized and he did little teaching. His “private” symbolism was far more personal than of other Symbolist painters such as Gustave Moreau and James Ensor. Munch was still highly influential, particularly with the German Expressionists, who followed his philosophy, “I do not believe in the art which is not the compulsive result of Man’s urge to open his heart.” Many of his paintings, including The Scream, have universal appeal in addition to their highly personal meaning.

Munch’s works are now represented in numerous major museums and galleries in Norway and abroad. After the Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China ended, the National Gallery in Beijing chose Munch as the first Western artist whose works they exhibited. His cabin, “The Happy House,” was given to the municipality of Asgardstrand in 1944; it serves as a small Munch museum. The inventory has been maintained exactly as he left it.

The Seine at Saint-Cloud ; 1890

Vampire ; 1895

Separation ; 1896