Nude with Red Skirt 1902

This is Edvard Munch’s painting, "Nude with Red Skirt." Munch made it with oil on canvas. Munch was a contemporary of Freud, and his work is often considered in terms of psychological drama. But the art historian is concerned with the social codes that frame the artist's private vision. Consider, for example, the display of the nude in the context of late 19th-century Europe. While women were gaining ground politically, they were still often viewed through the lens of male desire. A woman artist might challenge this male gaze by taking control of the way female bodies were represented, but what happens when it’s a man painting the picture? Further research into the archives of the Munch Museum and contemporary exhibition reviews might help us to understand the artist's intention and the public role of the artwork. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.