New Rays
An allegory of physics as a discipline
Listen to the text:
Edvard Munch's painting New Rays shows a naked pair surrounded by crystalline shapes and swirling rays of light.
It depicts physics as an academic discipline. In his own notes, Munch writes:
?[the motif] is infused with light – It travels into the bodies – and in and out of the crystal... – there is light that travels like x-rays?.
Munch was familiar with professor Kristian Birkeland's ground-breaking work in physics, including his research on the northern lights. This may be why he chose rays as a main motif.
Details
- Technique and materials: Oil on canvas
- Date: 1914–1916
- Dimensions: 455 x 225 cm
- Woll: 1225
- UiO.K.: 01402
Edvard Munch's Aula paintings
The decoration of the University Aula in Oslo was among Edvard Munch's most comprehensive art projects, and a prestigious and controversial assignment in its time.
The 11 pictures are the only expressionist monumental paintings preserved in their original context. The motifs show the university's activities and history, enlightenment and the great, eternal forces of nature and mankind.
The Aula decoration is part of UiO's art collection.