The Sick Child

A white pillow frames the main subject, a pale, red-haired girl in profile, her face turned towards a woman with her head bowed. The figures are depicted from close up, such that they fill much of the picture surface, thereby contracting the visible space. Details are sparse, although a few are included: a curtain, a half-empty glass and a bottle on a dresser. The painting is one of many contemporary depictions of a sickbed, which frequently signified tuberculosis, a bacterial infection that remained one of the most life-threatening human diseases in Europe until the 1950s.

The painting is often described as Munch's breakthrough work. It also meant a lot to the artist himself, who mentioned it in many of his letters and notebooks (Munch 1919; Munch 1928; emunch.no: MM N 76, MM N 77, MM N415, MM N 570; Munch Museum, MM.T.02748).

The work is the result of a lengthy process, and with its scraped surface, flowing shapes and rugged execution it stands out from the artist's other paintings of the 1880s.

The Sick Child attracted considerable attention when first exhibited at the National Annual Autumn Exhibition in 1886, under the title Studie (Study). Many critics felt provoked by the sketchy, unfinished quality. Despite its large format and ambitious theme, the work seemed insufficiently developed and was a source of controversy. Some regarded its coarse, irregular style as symptomatic of the radical, dissolute bohemian culture of the day, others praised it for its boldness and emotive force. The picture was described, on the one hand, as a failure and "... an abomination", on the other, as a masterpiece. Since then, it has entered the literature as the artist's first major succès de scandale.

Depictions of sick children were a popular genre in the day, especially as a means to demonstrate the realist ideal of representing the world in unvarnished form. In the years before Munch produced his picture, several of his closest colleagues had tackled the same theme with considerable success, including Christian Krohg and Hans Heyerdahl. Munch's treatment stands out from those earlier versions, however, in its deliberate coarseness and obscuration. Like many in that era, both Krohg and Munch had lost siblings at a young age, an experience that informs their approach to the subject. But the unusual form of Munch's work, and his later emphasis on personal experience as a motivating factor in his art, have encouraged scholars to view that early loss as a more significant influence in the case of Munch's picture. The work is often associated with the death of the artist's one-year-older sister, Johanne Sophie, who died of tuberculosis in 1877, just fifteen years old. The models for the girl and the woman were probably Betzy Nilsen and Munch's aunt, Karen Bjølstad.

We do not know of any preliminary sketches for the painting, although the small picture Sykeværelset (The Sickroom) from 1885--86 may have served as a study (Woll 2008, M 129). Several expert studies of materials and sources have shown that The Sick Child underwent a number of major revisions, both at the time of its creation and several years after it was first exhibited (Plahter 1974; Plahter 1994; Eggum 1978 B; Jakobsen, 2008; Aslaksby 1999; Aslaksby 2009). X-ray surveys have revealed changes in composition. In addition, an area to the right has been reworked at a later date, with the application of new paint. Stylistically, this section stands out from the rest of the picture. The alterations were probably carried out between 1896 and 1907, with the aim of repairing damage and surface weaknesses. Munch went on to paint a further five versions of the same composition, in 1896, two in 1907, 1925 and 1927 (Woll 2001, M 392, M 790, M 791, M 1561, M 1631). Initially it was the second version, the one from 1896, that the National Gallery acquired, as part of Olaf Schou's substantial bequest of 1909. But in 1931, this painting was swapped with the first version from 1886, owned by Oda Krohg. Ever since, it has occupied a very central place in the museum's collection and in presentations of Munch's work. The 1896 version is now in the Gothenburg Museum of Art. In addition to the abovementioned paintings, Munch produced four print versions loosely based on the same subject and composition, plus many adaptations (Woll 2001, G 7, G 59, G 72, G 73). In certain respects, the work Spring from 1889 (The National Museum, NG.M.00498) presents the same scene, although the painting is significantly different in size, form and composition. Other major works that address more or less the same subject include Death in the Sickroom (The National Museum, NG.M.00940). The painting's long and complex provenance has been traced in detail by Tone Skedsmo (Skedsmo 1985). For many years, ownership was disputed, and the work became the subject of several lawsuits, leading to a Supreme Court ruling in 1914, which granted right of disposal, but not rights of ownership, to Harald Nørregaard. The painting was offered to the National Gallery as early as 1895, but at that point the museum chose Self-Portrait with Cigarette (The National Museum, NG.M.00470) in its place. The National Gallery acquired the painting as the result of an exchange proposed by Oda Krohg. After its first showing in 1886, the painting featured in many of Munch's most important exhibitions throughout the 1890s. From the outset, it has occupied a prominent place in the academic literature and is now one of the most analysed and discussed of Munch's works. The picture's radical form signals an orientation that is already looking beyond the prevailing realism of the 1880s. It has been claimed that the work anticipates features that would set the tone in art around 1900, especially in relation to German expressionism (Schneede 2001). In 2009, the painting provided the central element for an exhibition at the National Museum, Oslo. Passages in Munch's own writings support the view that The Sick Child can be regarded as an experiment in psychologically charged realism.

Øystein Ustvedt The text was first published in Edvard Munch in the National Museum. A comprehensive overview (Oslo: National Museum, 2022).

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