A REVAMPED MUNCH MUSEUM

IN OSLO, AN INSTITUTION DEDICATED TO THE EXPRESSIONIST PAINTER EDVARD MUNCH HOLDS THE LARGEST COLLECTION OF HIS WORK IN THE WORLD

When the new Edvard Munch Museum opens on the Oslo waterfront at the end of October, fans of the expressionist’s work are in for a stunning surprise. Not only is the angular museum architecturally interesting—it leans toward the opera house and nearby historic district—but it’s five times bigger than the original.

The result: a new space, designed by Estudio Herreros, a Spanish architecture firm in Madrid, that’s soon to be home to the world’s largest collection of works from this Norwegian artist, renowned for The Scream, painted in 1893.

During a visit to Munch, as it’s now called, expect to be wowed by the museum’s collection of world-class contemporary and modernist art and other cultural offerings, including music, performance, film and art talks, and delicious meals served in several settings, including a rooftop restaurant with inspiring views.

“We will be doing programming on a completely new scale with what we’re calling Munch Live,” says Stein Olav Henrichsen, the museum’s director. “This is an ambitious, interdisciplinary program that takes the new museum building and event rooms into full use. We are very much looking forward to launching the program this fall.”

The building itself has transformed the Oslo skyline, too.

“It is a landmark building that greets people both at night and during the day and gives visitors an overview and orientation over and within the city, the surrounding mountains and the Oslo fjord,” Henrichsen says.

The hope is that the new space will continue to pay homage to Munch, who was born in 1863 and whose work is known for its preoccupation with mortality and sexuality.

“During his lifetime and beyond, Edvard Munch was considered a rebel and outcast for his avant-garde thinking and groundbreaking practice as an artist, always pushing the boundaries of well-established perceptions and common tastes,” Henrichsen says. “The new Munch aims to transform this spirit into a building.”

Visitors will also have the chance to view Munch’s largest paintings, such as The Sun and The Researchers, in a sixth-floor exhibit called Edvard Munch Monumental, which was especially constructed to house these oversize works.

“The version of The Sun owned by Munch is a full-size draft for the Aula frieze that the artist made in 1910-11. The oil painting’s size is about 4.5-by-8-meters–approximately 35 square meters,” Henrichsen says. “The Researchers is the largest of the monumental works and made its way down to the new Munch using a crane hoisted through a large wall slit on the sixth floor. This was a very spectacular and special moment.”

As for The Scream, which has long been seen as the utmost depiction of human anxiety, there are actually a few myths surrounding the work, Henrichsen says.

“It is a common perception that it is the protagonist in The Scream that is screaming, but actually, it is nature that is screaming,” he says. “Shivering with anxiety, the figure holds his hands toward his ears as he hears ‘a great and infinite scream passing through nature.’”

Ultimately, Henrichsen hopes that every visitor to Munch revels in the experience.

“As one of the world’s largest museums devoted to an individual artist, we will be able to show a lot more of Munch’s works than ever before,” he says. “Last, but not least, visitors can also look forward to experiencing the best view of Oslo and enjoying our collection in the best way—accessible and open to all.”

The new Edvard Munch Museum in Oslo, shown at left and above, has an angular style. The artist’s most famous work, The Scream, shown below, will be on display there.