Kvinden og slangen 1908 - 1909

Curator: Welcome. Before us is Edvard Munch’s lithograph, "Woman and the Snake," created between 1908 and 1909. It’s currently held here at the SMK, the National Gallery of Denmark. Editor: Immediately, I feel this primal quiet. The ink bleeds just so, creating soft edges and this almost secretive mood… the woman’s eyes… distant. Curator: Right, Munch consistently explored these primal themes of love, fear, and death in his oeuvre. We can interpret the "Woman and the Snake" in that context, considering the role of women as both life-givers and figures of temptation as perpetuated in art and culture. Editor: Temptation, yes, absolutely, but also there’s something vulnerable here. She’s not Eve in a garden, sly. More like someone half-dreaming… almost merging with the snake… accepting its presence as if it were a natural extension of herself. Maybe it represents a hidden side? The woman as medusa… both are ostracized, isolated figures from folklore... Curator: Yes, and such visual themes recur across movements during this period as part of a larger phenomenon of representing internalized female sexuality. The framing of Munch’s work in his contemporary exhibitions, for example, encouraged exactly such psychological and cultural readings of female representation. Editor: And speaking of exhibition, notice how simple, how economical, the rendering of landscape is… The composition directs our eyes immediately to the intimate scene between the woman and this… serpent confidant. It makes the experience extremely internalized... and what about the shadows suggesting an outside space? I feel there is a need for comfort there... maybe suggesting that our traumas are never resolved behind walls... Curator: I agree completely. Munch clearly presents that discomfort with himself throughout his lifetime. This piece showcases his talent for visualizing anxiety within human interactions. By grappling with anxieties through figuration, it almost demands from us an emotionally-intelligent response. Editor: Right, anxieties… Or a strange, forbidden peace found in embracing… well, embracing our inner serpents! We carry this piece now to add our modern anxieties, I guess. Curator: Indeed. Art persists through its ongoing interactions with viewers in novel and unexpected situations. Editor: So true. What seemed pertinent then in society, now appears new again with time!