Sunbathin 1915

Curator: This is Edvard Munch’s "Sunbathing", painted in 1915. Look at those broad strokes of oil paint. Editor: The scene is surprisingly placid. There is a striking lack of anxiety, so contrary to Munch's more recognized works. What are these figures symbolizing here? Curator: Well, it seems the application itself is less about perfect realism and more about capturing a fleeting moment. The visible brushstrokes almost vibrate. This work hails from a later period when Munch embraced open-air painting and more naturalistic depictions. It also reflects on how access to tools and new venues transformed art making, such as oil paint available in tubes that made this work outside much easier. Editor: You know, it feels deliberately posed. These two nude figures sit statically, presented almost as modern Adams and Eves against the backdrop of the sea. Considering his usual anxieties, does the bright palette here suggest a newfound harmony in the world war-torn landscape of Europe? What of the symbolic associations between bathing, cleansing, and rebirth during these troubled times? Curator: Possibly! Notice how the composition itself denies depth. The figures and the cliff face merge, blurring any easy separation between them. The focus is on texture and color, applied directly to the canvas with immediacy, that's Expressionism distilled. This points to a society ever in flux where even its structures are open for rapid change. Editor: I find that interesting because that’s quite contrary to how people had commonly seen nude figures until then. One often portrayed a powerful figure, standing in their heroic stance. Here it's much more mundane and subtle. There is more going on beneath the surface of this deceptively straightforward painting. The anxieties about health, vitality and human relationships persist as part of human life, expressed in this composition. Curator: Absolutely. Munch is wrestling with how to convey emotion through very tangible means. He's a painter intensely aware of his craft, how the very act of applying paint conveys meaning. The social setting made outdoor recreation, nude, not taboo anymore; a transformation shown in brushstrokes. Editor: I will never quite see beaches the same now. Curator: Indeed. Considering what this work might tell about social relationships might transform my own views about human relationships as well.