“Stop and look at how Edvard Munch portrays a kiss not just as an act of affection, but as a profound merging of two individuals, blurring their identities into one shadowy form. This work, rich in emotional intensity, exemplifies the Symbolist and Expressionist focus on inner psychological states.”
In this painting, two figures merge into a single, almost abstract form, their faces dissolving into one another. The embrace is so tight that their individual identities seem to disappear, emphasizing a profound, almost suffocating intimacy. The scene unfolds within a dimly lit room, with a window offering a glimpse of a streetlamp and perhaps a tree, suggesting an urban setting and the passage of time. The muted colors and broad brushstrokes create a sense of melancholy and introspection, typical of Symbolism and Expressionism, movements that explored emotional and psychological states rather than objective reality. The artwork invites viewers to consider the complex nature of human connection, where love can be both unifying and consuming. The tempera on canvas medium contributes to the painting's somber, matte finish, enhancing its emotional depth.
- Artist
- Edvard Munch
- Date
- 1897
- Medium
- Tempera on canvas
- Location
- Munch Museum
What to Notice
Four details hide in plain sight. Here’s where to look.

The way the two faces blend into one indistinct mass.
The dark, almost featureless clothing of the figures.
The single window, offering the only light source in the room.
The subtle outline of a streetlamp or tree outside the window.
Stand in front of it and listen
The full narration walks you through The Kiss — the story behind it, the details most visitors miss, and why it matters. Free in the Art Whisper app.
Edvard Munch
1863–1944 · NorwayNorwegian painter whose 1893 work The Scream became one of Western art's most iconic images.
Further Works by Munch
Potted Plant
1881 · Munch Museum
The Hands
1893 · Munch Museum
Consolation
1907 · Munch Museum
Two Women on the Shore
1935 · Munch Museum
The Sick Child
1885 · National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design
Øvre Foss
1880 · Munch Museum
The Scream
1910 · Munch Museum
Death and the Woman
1894 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
More from Symbolism
The Seine at Pont de Grenelle
Gauguin · 1875 · Wallraf–Richartz Museum
Beata Beatrix
Rossetti · 1877 · Birmingham Museums Trust
Lozenge Composition with Yellow, Black, Blue, Red, and Gray
Mondrian · 1921 · Art Institute of Chicago
Portrait of a Lady in a High Hat
Klimt · 1882 · Art Institute of Chicago
More works to explore
Beyond Munch and Symbolism: works from the same years, and from the other movements The Kiss belongs to.
Same movement · Expressionism
Cart with Red and White Ox
Vincent van Gogh · 1884 · Kröller-Müller Museum
Same era · 1880s–1910s
A Woman Walking in a Garden
Vincent van Gogh · 1887 · Frans Buffa & sons
Same movement · Expressionism
Birth
Marc Chagall · 1911 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Still Life with Crayfish
Mikhail Larionov · 1900 · Museum Ludwig
Same movement · Expressionism
Crouching Nude in Shoes and Black Stockings, Back View
Egon Schiele · 1912 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Frauenkopf vor Sonnenblumen
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner · 1906 · Museum Frieder Burda
Same movement · Expressionism
Death in the Garden (Legend)
Paul Klee · 1919 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1880s–1910s
A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884
Okada Saburosuke · 1884 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same movement · Expressionism
Figure with Meat
Francis Bacon · 1954 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Madame Léon Clapisson
Léon-Victor Dupré · 1883 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Émilie
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec · 1897 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Ile aux Orties near Vernon
Claude Monet · 1897 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Maternal Caress
Mary Cassatt · 1896 · Philadelphia Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Rue de l'Epicerie, Rouen (Effect of Sunlight)
Camille Pissarro · 1898 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
Still Life with Teapot and Fruit
Paul Gauguin · 1896 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1880s–1910s
The Loire
Alfred Sisley · 1896 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1880s–1910s
House and Courtyard
John Singer Sargent · 1895 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
