Touching. Andreas Eriksson and Edvard Munch

Touching is a duo exhibition of prints by Andreas Eriksson (b. 1975) and Edvard Munch (1863–1944). Munch was a favourite of Signe Maria and Ernest Thiel, and their collection includes 95 graphic prints of the Norwegian artist. It is with great pleasure we now present a large selection of these, in dialogue with works by Andreas Eriksson. Eriksson is a renowned contemporary artist who represented Sweden at the Venice Biennale in 2011 and has had solo exhibitions at Bonniers Konsthall, the Nordic Watercolour Museum in Skärhamn and the Museum of Sketches in Lund. Perhaps best known as a painter, he has also made prints since his late teens.

This exhibition highlights the distinct style of both artists, but also shows how they each bring out new qualities in the works of the other. Juxtaposing Eriksson and Munch in a free format dissolves the notion of a linear art history. The images are liberated from their habitual contexts. By hanging their works from different eras next to each other, new mutual relationships emerge.

Not only does the now living artist take over where the older artist left off, but Munch’s pictures unfold and converse with Eriksson’s. It is not a question of wanting to trace a trajectory, but of trying to achieve a retake. By shifting between contrasts such as figuration and abstraction, and mere allusion, something new can be revealed and come to life in the rooms. Sometimes the works reflect each other.  A tree by a young Eriksson, Untitled (1993), meets Munch’s Oak (1903); the same questions are repeated over the years.

The exhibition is shown in the Söderberg Room on the second floor and the passage adjoining the Salon, and in the Tower Room at the top of the house. An intimate setting congenial to both artists.

Andreas Eriksson (b. 1975) studied at the Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm in 1993 – 98. He lives and works in Medelplana in north-west Kinnekulle just outside Lidköping. Eriksson’s artistic practice comprises multiple techniques, including painting, printmaking, photography, sculpture, textiles and installation. Eriksson’s perspective on and use of the surrounding countryside at Kinnekulle imbues his conceptual works with an earthy resonance. He has had numerous solo shows in Sweden and internationally and participated in even more group exhibitions. He is represented at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, MUMOK in Vienna, Göteborgs Konstmuseum, Moderna Museet in Stockholm, the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebæk and Nasjonalmuseet in Oslo. Read more about the artist