Chrysler Museum of Art to Present the Iconic Works of Edvard Munch

Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863–1944), Geschrei (The Scream), 1895, Lithograph, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Rosenwald Collection, 1943

NORFOLK, Va. (Jan. 14, 2020) — The Chrysler Museum of Art will present its first-ever exhibition of Edvard Munch’s iconic works in Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life: Prints from the National Gallery of Art. On view February 28 – May 17, 2020, the show will consist of 50 prints,  including The Scream and Madonna. It will include images Munch developed for his 1902 exhibition Frieze of Life, as well as the entire 1908–1909 series Alpha and Omega, his invented story of the first humans. The exhibition will also offer Munch’s satirical look at his own life and failures at love. “The work of the Norwegian artist has come to symbolize the crisis of modern life.  The Chrysler’s exhibition is an original concept that focuses on Munch’s career-long obsession with the theme of the cycle of life, from the seeds of love and the passing of love to anxiety and death,” said Lloyd DeWitt, Ph.D., the Chrysler’s chief curator and Irene Leache Curator of European art.

Munch’s early years were marred by illness, tragedy and death as his mother and sister both succumbed to tuberculosis. He suffered from anxiety and depression as well as chronic bronchitis yet developed a successful avant-garde artistic career in Kristiania (present-day Oslo), Norway.  While the many lonesome figures in his work suggest he was a solitary figure, he was highly involved in the bohemian and artistic life of Kristiania, as well as Paris and Berlin, as the first section of the Chrysler’s exhibition explores.  He illustrated programs for the renowned Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen and made a portrait of the leading French poet Stephan Mallarmé.

The second section looks at the cycle of life and includes prints connected to Munch’s 1902 exhibition, Frieze of Life.  The project grew out of images from the mid-1890s on the theme of love, like Madonna and Attraction. Munch expanded these into the Frieze first exhibited in Berlin in 1902. Included were images on death, such as In the Land of Crystals of 1897, and anxiety displayed in The Scream of 1895.  The lithograph version in the exhibition is one of only 25 impressions of the print that exist today.  The iconic image documents a dusk stroll in Kristiania during which the sky turned bright red and Munch experienced the “scream heard through all nature.”  The unusual face of the screaming figure may have been based on an ancient Peruvian mummy he saw at the Universal Exposition of 1889 in Paris.

The focus on the cycle of life allowed Munch to process the many traumas and psychological challenges he faced, principally anxiety and addiction, which led to his 1908 hospitalization in Copenhagen.  His psychiatrist used modern treatments, including a version of electroshock therapy.  During his eight months of treatment, he produced Alpha and Omega. Often revisiting themes in the Frieze of Life that focused on love, separation and death, Alpha and Omega chronicles the story of “the first humans” who live and die on an island.  The characters are inspired by Munch and Tulla Larsen, a much younger woman with whom he had a disastrous affair that terminated in Munch’s suicide threat and gunshot wound that disfigured one of his fingers.  Munch frequented the Copenhagen Zoo while under treatment and satirized Larsen’s friends as different zoo animals that ultimately attack and kill Alpha, ending the story and closing the cycle of life.   The works in this exhibition show a remarkable side of Munch, who unflinchingly confronts his failures and inner demons through his powerful imagery.

“These are fragile prints that can only be exhibited every few years in order to protect them against light exposure so that future generations can enjoy them,” said DeWitt.  “The National Gallery of Art and the Epstein family have been exceptionally generous in lending an astounding 50 sheets so that our audience can experience the full range of work of one of the most well-known and powerful artists of the 19^th and 20^th centuries.”

PROGRAMMING

Moving through Munch
Sunday, March 8 at 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. in the galleries and 3 p.m. in Huber Court | Free

Join the talented dancers of Todd Rosenlieb Dance and Virginia Ballet Theatre for a response to Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life, giving movement to the themes and emotions found throughout Munch’s work. Please note the in-gallery performances will move throughout the exhibition and there is no seating.

Teacher Professional Development: Printmaking with Feeling
Saturday, March 14 at 10:30 a.m. | Free

Using symbolism and allegories, Edvard Munch reflected on his own emotions through printmaking. How can we create spaces where students feel safe enough to share their emotions through art? What should we do when students need more of an outlet than we can provide? This hands-on workshop will include a panel discussion with art therapists, school psychologists and other experts.

Printmaking Workshops
Saturday, March 21 or May 2 or Sunday, April 19 at 1 p.m. | Cost: $36 for Museum Members, $45 for non-members

Learn relief printing techniques from local artist Heather Bryant and create an original artwork to take home in this hands-on workshop for beginners.

Munch/Ibsen: A Performance with The Governor’s School for the Arts
Saturday and Sunday, April 4 and 5 at 2 p.m. | Free

Edvard Munch was a great admirer of playwright Henrik Ibsen, author of several classics including Peer Gynt, Hedda Gabler and A Doll’s House. Over his lifetime, Munch produced more than 400 illustrations of Ibsen’s plays. Students from The Governor’s School for the Arts will bring Munch’s illustrations to life by performing a selection of scenes from Ibsen’s work in the exhibition.

Gallery Talk with the Curator
Saturday, April 11 at 11 a.m. | Free

Join Lloyd DeWitt, Ph.D., chief curator and Irene Leache Curator of European art, for a close look at Edvard Munch and the Cycle of Life: Prints from the National Gallery of Art. Learn about the narratives presented in the exhibition and how the artist’s personal battles with mental health issues influenced his artmaking.

Talk Back at Zeiders American Dream Theater
Saturday, April 11 at 4:30 p.m. (following the 2 p.m. matinee of Next to Normal)

Zeiders American Dream Theater will host a panel discussion about the themes of mental health presented in the musical and in the Chrysler’s exhibition of Edvard Munch’s work. Panel members will include Lloyd DeWitt, Ph.D., the Chrysler’s chief curator and Irene Leache Curator of European art; Sibel Galindez, the community liaison at Zeiders American Dream Theater; a mental health professional and actors from the musical. Chrysler Museum Members save 15% on tickets for all showings of Next to Normal at Zeiders American Dream Theater. Use code ChryslerMS at thez.org to purchase your discounted ticket.

ABOUT THE CHRYSLER MUSEUM OF ART

The Chrysler Museum of Art is one of America’s most distinguished mid-sized art museums, with a nationally recognized collection of more than 30,000 objects, including one of the great glass collections in America. The core of the Chrysler’s collection comes from Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., an avid art collector who donated thousands of objects from his private collection to the Museum. The Museum has growing collections in many areas and mounts an ambitious schedule of visiting exhibitions and educational programs each season. The Chrysler has also been recognized nationally for its unique commitment to hospitality with its innovative gallery host program

The Perry Glass Studio is a state-of-the-art facility on the Museum’s campus. The studio offers programming for aspiring and master artists alike in a variety of processes including glassblowing, fusing, flameworking, coldworking and neon. The studio has also cultivated a reputation for its cutting-edge performance evenings, and was the host venue of the 2017 Glass Arts Society Conference.

In addition, the Chrysler Museum of Art administers two historic houses in downtown Norfolk: the Moses Myers House and the Willoughby-Baylor House, as well as the Jean Outland Chrysler Library on the campus of Old Dominion University. General admission is free at all venues. For more information on the Chrysler Museum of Art, visit chrysler.org.

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