Where can I see Munch's Melancholy?

This version is at the National Gallery in Oslo, Norway. Munch painted several versions of this composition between 1891 and 1893.

Who inspired this painting?

Munch's friend Jappe Nilssen, a journalist, inspired the composition. Nilssen's jealous love affair with Oda Krohg provided the emotional subject for the brooding figure.

What is the Frieze of Life?

Munch's "Frieze of Life" is a series exploring love, anxiety, and death. Melancholy belongs to this group alongside works like The Scream and Madonna.

Where is the beach in this painting?

The landscape shows Åsgårdstrand, a coastal town south of Oslo. Munch spent summers there from 1889 and featured its beach in many paintings.

Where Is Melancholy? See It at National Gallery of Norway

Norwegian artist Edvard Munch painted this brooding shoreline scene in 1892, depicting a man with his head resting in his hand at the edge of a beach. The figure's melancholic pose was inspired by the unhappy romantic affair of Munch's friend, the journalist Jappe Nilssen. Nilssen was involved with Oda Krohg, wife of the painter Christian Krohg, and his jealousy became the emotional core of this composition.

The landscape represents Åsgårdstrand's beach, where Munch spent his summers from 1889. He painted multiple versions of this scene under various titles including "Jealousy," "Evening," and "Jappe on the Beach." When exhibited in 1891 at the Autumn Exhibition in Oslo, the artist Christian Krohg credited it as the first Symbolist painting by a Norwegian artist.

This version hangs at the National Gallery in Oslo. The painting became part of Munch's "Frieze of Life" series, which explored themes of love, anxiety, and death. The simplified forms and moody color palette would influence Expressionism throughout the 20th century.