Love and Pain (1895)

by Edvard Munch

This painting by Edvard Munch shows a man embracing a woman while she kisses his neck. He is fully clothed, whilst she is naked. Her red hair flows over his head, and she holds him in a deeo embrace.

This painting was later dubbed ‘The Vampire”, as some people suggested it might show a vampire biting a man’s neck. In this interpretation the red hair blends into a stream of blood, flowing over his head.

Munch was most likely observing the close relationship between love and pain (as the original title suggests). The sad truth is that love and suffering are often two sides of the same coin. It is precisely those we love who have the ability to wound us the most. In this sense it’s a painting with Nietzschean overtones (Nietzsche was a contemporary of Munch’s), as it brings love and pain together, rather than seeing them as separate.

Some have speculated that it’s an allegorical image representing Munch’s sadness at the death of his sister. But perhaps it’s not about identifying the ‘true’ meaning behind the painting, but rather acknowledging that the very fact that it leands itself to multiple readings is a sign of its enduring power.

Love and pain, it’s something everyone can relate to in different ways. But rarely has this central truth of the human condition been as beautifully observed as in the painting above.

Julian

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