Christina Krausslach ART1030 XG W3

Question 11

Why do you think the work of Edvard Munch has retained so much popularity?
Discuss his works, the movement as a whole, and our current society.

Edvard Munch’s works have retained so much popularity due to accurately

portraying the simplicity of various aspects of life with all of its struggles, emotions,
and changes. He is able to take normal everyday situations and experiences and
through his creations place his audience in view of a moment in time as observer. In
doing so, Munch reveals his emotional perspective on such an event literally
through the work of art itself. Subtle and gentle in romantic situations, that theme
of created works attracts those who enjoy the intimacy of life and others. In a
similar way, he has conveyed painful situations involving “sickness, death,” pain,
and “anxiety,” which relieves the viewer of stress in inviting a sense of belonging
and release of emotional expression to an otherwise painful situation giving the
viewer a way to let the stress of the event become lessened (Munch Museum
online). This alone heals a heart through which identification of feelings that might
otherwise be suppressed. On those two themes alone, and from the educational
perspective of having a Psychology degree myself, I am suggesting he is a
forerunner to what is now being known as a professional field of study entitled art
therapy.

Kulturnett.no, a Norway Arts Council related website, explains how, “Drawing is the
very foundation of Edvard Munch’s art; he drew incessantly and almost anywhere;
on journeys, in cafés, at the music hall, out-of-doors, at home and – of course – in
his studio. He drew absolutely everything; animals, nature, architecture, but
primarily people. Family and friends, children and workers, burghers and
Bohemians, mermaids and madonnas.” According to the online Wk3 readings, as a
Symbolist, Edvard Munch “created works that explored the inner worlds of human
psychology.” Our online test defines Symbolism as “A late-19th-century movement
based on the idea that the artist was not an imitator of nature but a creator who
transformed the facts of nature into a symbol of the inner experience of those facts”
(Kleiner, 464). So the experience of what is visually seen through the human eye
becomes transformed into a different visual representation of art and expression of
emotion. “The task of Symbolist visual and verbal artists was not to see things but
to see through them to a significance and reality far deeper than what superficial
appearance gave. Symbolists cultivated all the resources of imagination, and their
subjects became increasingly esoteric and exotic, mysterious, visionary, dreamlike,
and fantastic” (376).

Likewise, The International Art Therapy Organization (IATO) website explains how,
“Art has the potential to change lives and often in profound ways. When words are
not enough, we turn to images and symbols to tell our stories. And in telling our
stories through art, we can find a path to health and wellness, emotional reparation,
recovery, and ultimately, transformation.” Furthermore, in the Christian faith, an
understanding of prophetic arts is such that, “The Prophetic Arts are any and all
forms of the visual and fine arts, used at the leading and discretion of Holy Spirit,
for the purpose of communicating the truths of God in a fresh and relevant way”
(Prophetic Arts Facebook page).

What is interesting is that if identified by country, Edvard Munch is considered part

of Impressionism especially through his piece entitled, “The Scream.” Yet, in
Norway, where he was originally born, he is known and recognized as a Symbolist
according to online classroom content (Symbolism (2 of 2) and SmartHistory.org).
“…it is the impressions of the soul, and not the eye, that are Munch’s main interest.
‘The Scream’ is often described as the first expressionistic picture, and is the most
extreme example of Munch’s “soul paintings” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway,
www.EdvardMunch.info, Biography 2). In conclusion, it is Munch’s ability to visually
portray the human soul that enables his work overall to transcend time and appeal
to anyone no matter what exact medium he chose.

Please Note: For the sake of the reader and the class, images of Edvard Munch’s
works are not included due to the overall conclusions of all of them as a collective in
order to answer the question. A simple copy and paste of links or an image search
through Google quickly and sufficiently provides access to an array of images
providing a more cohesive presentation that just a few horizontally stacked within
the online classroom area.

Works Cited

Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner's Art through the Ages: a Concise Western History. Second Edition.

Place of Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Art Institute of Pittsburgh

Online

Division. Web. 3 Mar. 2011.

Lowe, Peggy L. “Symbolism (2 of 2)." Week 3 ART1030 Survey of Modern and Contemporary
Art; The
Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online. The Art Institute Pittsburgh-Online Division, Web. 3
Mar. 2011.
Avacado, Metallic. "Munch - Drawings." Munch-museet. The Munch Museum. Web. 09 Mar.
2011.
<http://www.munch.museum.no/tegneren/english.aspx>.
Kulturnett.no - Kultur I Norge På Nett. Ed. Gunnar Urtegaard. The Ministry of Culture and
Church Affairs,
04 Apr. 2004. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. <http://kulturnett.no/index.jsp?&lang=en>.
Malchiodi, Cathy. "International Art Therapy Organization [IATO] Group | Facebook."
Welcome to
Facebook - Log In, Sign Up or Learn More. Web. 09 Mar. 2011.
<http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=70788601202&ref=ts>.
"Prophetic Arts | Facebook." Welcome to Facebook - Log In, Sign Up or Learn More. Web. 09
Mar. 2011.
<http://www.facebook.com/pages/Prophetic-Arts/50329082709?
ref=ts#!/pages/Prophetic-
 Arts/50329082709?v=wall>.
Symbolism: Munch's The Storm. Smart History. Web. 9 Mar. 2011.
<http://smarthistory.org/symbolismmunch-the-storm.html>.
Høifødt, Frank. "Edvard Munch» Edvard Munch Biography 2." Edvard Munch» Edvard Munch.
Nytt Fra
Norge for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2010. Web. 09 Mar. 2011.
<http://www.edvardmunch.info/biography-2/>.
Munch-museet. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. <http://www.munch.museum.no/?
id=&mid=&lang=en>.
Jaster, Roman. Edvard Munch - The Dance of Life Site. 2005. Web. 10 Mar. 2011.
<http://www.edvard-
munch.com/>.