Edward Munch (Norwegian, 1863-1944) : Madonna (1895-1902)
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published 29/11/2006
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SummaryMadonna is one of Munch’s most popular images. It is a mix between a controversial image linked to a controversial artist, and a transcendent representation of women through different aspects. These are reflected in the different titles that had the painting: Madonna, Conception, Loving Woman, Monna and Annunziata. The first exhibition of Munch’s paintings in Berlin in 1892 triggered a real scandal. He had been invited by a circle of painters called the Berlin’s artists union. It was the first time that he exhibited his works abroad. Deeply disturbed and shocked by the Munch’s paintings, a majority of German artists that were very conservative in terms of style decided to close the exhibition in spite of the protest of some artists among them who were interested in the boldness of Munch’s pictures. Only a very few persons could view the Madonna, hidden in the back rooms of galleries. That is why it became of very special image, symbol of the enigma of life and death, the secret of woman sexuality and capability to give life.
If it is difficult to put Edward Munch in a historical context, is because when he lived he had already epitomized the anarchist and individualist figure. He was considered a kind of genius on the fringes of society and removed far the painting movements of his times. According to him, he was living at the beginning of new times. Consequently, he thought the birth of a new century had to match the radical changes in terms of the subject of paintings. In his Saint Cloud Manifesto written in 1889, but not published until 1929, he explained that he wanted to depict “living people who breathe and feel suffer and love”. With this, he rejected the emotionally neutral subjects of Impressionism, and evoked his determination to paint pictures expressive states of mind. Consequently, suffering will be omnipresent in his work. Suffering through love towards death, suffering more mental than physical, realized by gesture more than by action, by facial expression more than by event.
If it is difficult to put Edward Munch in a historical context, is because when he lived he had already epitomized the anarchist and individualist figure. He was considered a kind of genius on the fringes of society and removed far the painting movements of his times. According to him, he was living at the beginning of new times. Consequently, he thought the birth of a new century had to match the radical changes in terms of the subject of paintings. In his Saint Cloud Manifesto written in 1889, but not published until 1929, he explained that he wanted to depict “living people who breathe and feel suffer and love”. With this, he rejected the emotionally neutral subjects of Impressionism, and evoked his determination to paint pictures expressive states of mind. Consequently, suffering will be omnipresent in his work. Suffering through love towards death, suffering more mental than physical, realized by gesture more than by action, by facial expression more than by event.
Table of Contents
- If it is difficult to put Edward Munch in a historical context. He is one of the fathers of Expressionism
- Munch experimented with multiples techniques as drawing, painting with oil and watercolor, and lithography
- Suggesting that Madonna is injured, Munch introduces violence and death feeling in this work
- If we keep in mind Freud's influence on Expressionism, Madonna can also be seen as a reference to the links between Munch and his mother
- In fact, like in this painting, women are depicted as real femmes fatales in numerous of Munch's works
- Munch created a very personal style, but he highly influenced other painters
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