Fertility

About this work

A man and a woman in profile on either side of a fruit-laden tree, in the structure of Adam and Eve. The woman is pregnant and holds a basket of cherries; the man is stooped, leaning on a stick, facing a severed branch. Munch painted it in the years Tulla Larsen was pressing him to marry, and turned the fertility symbol on its head: for him procreation was not a celebration but a threat to his ability to work.

One of the smallest works here, 38 by 58 cm. At that size every stone is a significant share of the surface, and there is no room to correct.