Hmmm. I feel like Munch did not bequeath his best work to the city, because this museum and collection was disappointing. I found far more enjoyable paintings of his in the National Gallery. For example, I am not a fan of Van Gogh, but if I’m looking at paintings repeatedly thinking “Van Gogh did that better”, it’s not a ringing endorsement.
I don’t recognise the museum I visited from the picture, because the building I visited was tall and thin with many, many floors. The escalators were fun. So there was that.
The top floor describes itself as illicit. I appreciate that Amsterdam this is not, but if that is illicit, well, the Norwegians are far more prudish than I thought. It was also mildly disturbing to see many, many pensioners doodling with crayons, even if they were allegedly “wood cut rubbing”. There was no room at the table for me to join, as this interactive exhibit proved to be so popular, but I was wondering how “illicit” those rubbings were (no innuendo intended”).
One other point: when I arrived, there were many South Koreans queueing politely to get in. Unfortunately, they were queueing right around the queue for everyone who needed a ticket, blocking the entrance. Despite three staff members at the desk where I needed to get to to buy my ticket, none of them obviously felt it was their responsibility to move the queue somewhere more convenient for the likes of me. Maybe they knew the exhibits weren’t really worth it????




















