JEFF DUNN; News Editor: dunnja@plu.edu
“Edvard Munch and the Sea,” an exhibit featuring the Norwegian painter known for his famous piece “The Scream,” opened at the Tacoma Art Museum April 9 and will remain a main exhibition until July 17.
The sea is a major theme in much of Munch’s works. In one piece on display at TAM, “On the Waves of Love,” a woman is painted in black as her hair and the waves of the sea behind her meld into one. Another piece on display, “Angst,” shows several figures dressed in drab garb in a procession marching from the sea, again in all black.
“Edvard Munch and the Sea is the exciting result of a partnership between PLU and Tacoma Art Museum. Munch was an incredibly skilled printmaker, and his work communicates big emotions, from anxiety and loss to joy and bliss. As students approach finals and the end of the school year, I’m sure they’ll relate to those emotions! Through the MUSE program, PLU students receive free admission to TAM, and the museum is an easy bus ride from campus. We encourage students to take a creative break and come see Munch,” said TAM’s Public Relations and Communications Manager Julianna Verboort.
“We’d love for students to be exposed to multiple impressions/articles about the exhibition so they’ll be encouraged to come see it,” Verboort wrote in an email to Marketing & Communications.
In addition to the exhibit at TAM, the Scandinavian Cultural Center will host several events in the coming months highlighting Munch’s legacy and connection to Scandinavian heritage. “Munch and Medicine,” (April 23 at 4 p.m. in SCC) features Allison Morehead, an Associate Professor of Art History from Queens University. Morehead will weave together Munch’s interest in the sea and medicine, and will present her research from an ongoing project “Munch, Modernism and Medicine.” She will also participate as a guest judge in the “Inspired by Munch” student exhibition, displayed in SCC.
The student exhibition, which offers a cash prize of $500 for first place, $250 for second place and $125 for third place, will encourages students to submit works of art or reflecting techniques and motifs used by Munch. Full rules for the exhibition can be found at plu.edu/scancenter/munch.
