Attraction I by Edvard Munch

Attraction I

Edvard Munch · 1896

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“Stop to see how Edvard Munch captures the raw, magnetic pull between two figures on a moonlit shore, using stark lines and swirling forms to evoke a powerful emotional landscape.”

ABOUT THIS WORK

In "Attraction I," two figures, a man and a woman, stand on a shoreline, their forms simplified and almost silhouetted against a swirling, moonlit sky. The woman, with her long, flowing hair, seems to draw the man towards her, her body a sinuous curve. This lithograph, created in 1896, captures a sense of primal energy and emotional tension through its stark contrasts and fluid lines. The landscape itself, with its dark, undulating forms, seems to echo the internal turmoil and magnetic pull between the individuals. It’s a powerful exploration of human connection and the mysterious forces that bind us, rendered with the raw intensity characteristic of Symbolism and early Expressionism.

DETAILS
Artist
Edvard Munch
Date
1896
Medium
Lithograph
Location
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
ART MOVEMENTS
LOOK CLOSER

What to Notice

Four details hide in plain sight. Here’s where to look.

Attraction I
01

The woman's long, unbound hair, almost merging with the dark sky.

02

The way the man's figure leans into the woman's, suggesting an invisible pull.

03

The swirling, almost hypnotic lines in the sky and water.

04

The stark contrast between the dark figures and the lighter, glowing moon.

AUDIO DEEP DIVE

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THE ARTIST

Edvard Munch

1863–1944 · Norway

Norwegian painter whose 1893 work The Scream became one of Western art's most iconic images.

Read Munch’s full story
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EXPLORE THE MOVEMENT

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Beyond Munch and Symbolism: works from the same years, and from the other movements Attraction I belongs to.

Cart with Red and White Ox Same movement · Expressionism Cart with Red and White Ox Vincent van Gogh · 1884 · Kröller-Müller Museum A Woman Walking in a Garden Same era · 1880s–1910s A Woman Walking in a Garden Vincent van Gogh · 1887 · Frans Buffa & sons Birth Same movement · Expressionism Birth Marc Chagall · 1911 · Art Institute of Chicago Still Life with Crayfish Same era · 1880s–1910s Still Life with Crayfish Mikhail Larionov · 1900 · Museum Ludwig Crouching Nude in Shoes and Black Stockings, Back View Same movement · Expressionism Crouching Nude in Shoes and Black Stockings, Back View Egon Schiele · 1912 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art Frauenkopf vor Sonnenblumen Same era · 1880s–1910s Frauenkopf vor Sonnenblumen Ernst Ludwig Kirchner · 1906 · Museum Frieder Burda Death in the Garden (Legend) Same movement · Expressionism Death in the Garden (Legend) Paul Klee · 1919 · Art Institute of Chicago A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884 Same era · 1880s–1910s A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884 Okada Saburosuke · 1884 · Art Institute of Chicago
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