Full Description
The jarring emptiness following the loss of a loved one, the expansive out-of-body sensation of sensual touch, the lassitude of melancholy and the ecstatic receptivity to sunshine. His ability to capture and convey sensation and feelings through the materials of art, places the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (1863-1944) at the forefront of European art at the turn of the last century.
Interestingly, Munch's artistic exploration of perception, and his persistent questioning of the objectivity of vision, intersect with ideas that matured within the fields of psychology and experimental optics at the time.
Edvard Munch: Inner Fire examines these connections, demonstrating his continuing exploration of the conditions of sight. The essays in this catalogue examine this phenomenon while also probing a lesser-known aspect of the artist's work: Munch's relationship to Italy.
The first essay, Lasse Jacobsen's 'Edvard Munch. Italian Impressions', explores this connection explicitly, as part of a general overview of Munch's life and work.
The second text, 'Reflections in Munch's Inner Eye' by Patricia G. Berman, charts the art historical context of Munch's exploration of experience's subjective dimension. Emil Leth Meilvang's 'Seeing without Sight. Munch's Vision', on its part, explores the relationship between Munch's artistic development and simultaneous developments within the perceptual sciences. Edvard Munch. Inner Fire includes essayistic pieces by authors Melania G. Mazzucco and Hanne Ørstavik: 'I am a Romantic' and 'Who Am I'. Each demonstrates Munch's continuing ability to light the inner fires of other artists.
Contents
Giuseppe Sala, Mayor of Milan
9 Tommaso Sacchi, Councillor for Culture, City of Milan
10 Domenico Piraina, Director for Culture of the City of Milan and Director of Palazzo Reale
14 Iole Siena, President and CEO of Arthemisia
15 Tone Hansen, Director of MUNCH
Essays
19 Edvard Munch. Italian Impressions
Lasse Jacobsen
36 Reflections in Munch's Inner Eye
Patricia G. Berman
57 Seeing without Sight. Munch's Vision
Emil Leth Meilvang
67 I am a Romantic
Melania G. Mazzucco
Works
82 Training the Eye
100 Hauntings
122 When Bodies Meet and Depart
164 Tulla Larsen
170 Munch in Italy
176 Invisible Universe
186 Who Am I
Hanne Ørstavik
196 The Aula Decorations
204 Facing the Mirror
222 Edvard Munch's Legacy
Appendix
232 List of Illustrations and Exhibited Works
240 Authors' Biographies
