Head by Head 1905

Curator: Edvard Munch’s "Head by Head," currently housed at the Harvard Art Museums, is a woodcut print rendering of two faces merged in a kiss. Editor: It strikes me as incredibly raw, almost violent in its intimacy. The stark lines of the woodcut and the dual-toned color palette give it an unsettling edge. Curator: Munch's use of the woodcut medium is significant here. The deliberate carving and gouging mirror the emotional intensity he’s channeling, tapping into the angst-ridden psyche of the Symbolist movement. Editor: Absolutely. And the way the faces seem to meld together speaks to the loss of individual identity within relationships, especially in the context of late 19th-century anxieties around gender and sexuality. The androgynous features are hard to ignore. Curator: The kiss, a recurrent motif in Munch's art, becomes a complex symbol—representing not just love, but also vulnerability, fear, and the inevitable merging of souls. We can even see echoes of medieval depictions of the soul leaving the body as a kiss. Editor: It’s a potent image, forcing us to confront the messiness of human connection. Considering the social taboos and the era's constraints on love, it's a compelling piece of radical self-expression. Curator: Indeed, its symbolic power continues to resonate across different eras. Editor: A discomforting and complex artwork, it invites introspection and dialogue.