Edvard Munch Portraits: first-of-a-kind British exhibition explores the 'prolific' work of Norwegian artist

'Scintillating pictures' offer new insight into misunderstood artist behind The Scream

Jappe Nilssen (1909), detail
Jappe Nilssen (1909): 'a glumly earnest figure in expensive purple'
(Image credit: Munch Museet / Juri Kobayashi)

We've got Edvard Munch all wrong, said Nancy Durrant in The Times.

The common perception of the painter of "The Scream" is that he was an "angsty Nordic loner", a tortured soul isolated from his fellow man. He certainly had his demons – mental health problems and alcoholism – but Munch (1863-1944) was also "a social animal", with many friends who "cared deeply about him" and supported him at his lowest moments. We meet several of them over the course of this show, the first exhibition in Britain to focus solely on the Norwegian artist's "prolific" output as a portraitist.

Bringing together more than 40 pictures, it follows Munch's whole career, allowing us to observe how his style shifted over the years – from "the naturalism of his student days, seen in a contemplative image of his father", to his experiments with symbolism, vivid colours and contrasts. There are "superb" portraits of the bohemians of Kristiania (Oslo), such as the "charismatic anarchist" Hans Jaeger, and of many of the city's great and good. The paintings illustrate Munch's "psychological acuity", revealing him as a portraitist who strived "to capture his sitters' true nature or state of mind, whether they liked it or not".

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