Edvard Munch: Master Prints at the National Gallery, Washington

Edvard Munch, Evening on Karl Johan Street, 1895
lithograph in black with hand coloring on white thick wove paper
Collection of Catherine Woodard and Nelson Blitz Jr.

Edvard Munch: Master Prints at the National Gallery, Washington Haunting images of love, attraction, alienation, death, and other universal human experiences in the work of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (1865–1944) are presented in a fascinating exhibition of nearly 60 of his most important prints

On view at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, from July 31 through October 31, 2010

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Source: National Gallery of Art, Washington
‘Edvard Munch: Master Prints’ examines the artist’s stylistic approach to each of these themes, a process that involved transforming ideas into an evocative motif and exploring that image through numerous variations over a lifetime.

Such variations are evident in several of print series shown here, selected not only from the Gallery’s own holdings but also from two exceptional private collections: the Epstein Family Collection and the Collection of Catherine Woodard and Nelson Blitz Jr. The Gallery has presented five exhibitions on Munch: Woodcuts, Lithographs, and Etchings by Paul Gauguin and Edvard Munch (1947); Prints by Edvard Munch from the Rosenwald Collection (1972); “The Sick Girl” by Edvard Munch (1975); Edvard Munch: Symbols and Images (1979); and Edvard Munch: Master Prints from the Epstein Family Collection (1990).

“We are pleased to display exceedingly rare works by Munch, including stunning prints from the Epstein and Blitz Collections. We offer our profound thanks to the lenders who have made this exhibition possible,” said Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art. “The series brought together for this unique occasion will engage visitors as they experience Munch’s fascinating engagement with printmaking.”

Organized in five sections, the exhibition features side-by-side comparisons of related prints, revealing how Munch changed a particular image over time, in terms of color, line, texture, and pictorial detail. His persistent experimentation and virtuosic handling of woodcut, lithography, and intaglio enabled him to vary not only the form but the meaning of individual impressions. Such alterations, which could be both subtle and radical, are also seen in his paintings and drawings.