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Black print on beige paper of a nude man and woman kissing in front of a window.

Black print on beige paper of a nude man and woman kissing. The couple embrace each other with the man facing away from, and the woman facing towards, the viewer. The man holds the woman’s waist and head as the woman drapes her hands atop his shoulders. The man’s dark hair is short while the woman’s dark hair falls past her collarbone. The window behind the couple is open and framed with thick, dark curtains. The vague outline of a building can be seen through the right side of the glass.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2023.563
People
Edvard Munch, Norwegian (Loiten, Norway 1863 - 1944 Ekely, Norway)
Printed by Otto Felsing, German (1854 - 1920)
Title
The Kiss
Other Titles
Original Language Title: Kyss
Original Language Title: Der Kuss
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
1895
Culture
Norwegian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/379738

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Etching, open bite, drypoint, and burnisher printed in black ink on beige wove paper
Technique
Etching and drypoint
Dimensions
image: 32.5 × 26.2 cm (12 13/16 × 10 5/16 in.)
plate mark: 34.2 × 27.7 cm (13 7/16 × 10 7/8 in.)
sheet: 58.5 × 43.7 cm (23 1/16 × 17 3/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • Signed: Signed in graphite at lower right: "Edv Munch"
  • inscription: sheet margin, below lower right corner of plate mark, graphite: Edv Munch
  • inscription: lower left corner of sheet, graphite: [Two uppercase letters in cursive, indecipherable]
  • inscription: lower right corner of sheet, graphite: c/
  • collector's mark: verso, blue stamp:
    P A S / L G S [Philip A. Straus and Lynn G. Straus (Lugt 5642)]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[Kaare Berntsen, Oslo], sold; to Philip A. and Lynn G. Straus, New York, 1976, bequest; to Harvard Art Museums, 2023

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

State
Woll b
Standard Reference Number
Woll 23; Schiefler 22 b

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, The Philip and Lynn Straus Collection
Accession Year
2023
Object Number
2023.563
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Elizabeth Prelinger, Edvard Munch: Master Printmaker, exh. cat., W. W. Norton & Company and Harvard University Art Museums, Busch-Reisinger Museum (New York and London, 1983), pl. 108
  • Elizabeth Prelinger, Guide to the Exhibition "Edvard Munch: Master Printmaker. Prints from The Philip and Lynn Straus Collection", brochure, Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 1983), checklist

Exhibition History

  • Edvard Munch: Master Printmaker, Harvard University Art Museums, Busch-Reisinger Museum, 10/06/1983 - 11/27/1983; Neuberger Museum of Art, Purchase, 01/29/1984 - 03/25/1984

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu