Written, July 04, 2023
Poetry/Ekphrasis/Sick Girl Copyright Protected, ID 07-1559-634-04 All Rights Reserved, 2023, Constance La France
The Sick Child by Edvard Munch (1907)
The painting of "The Sick Child" by Edvard Munch (1863-1944) was painted in 1907, oil on canvas, 46.4 inches by 47.2 inches or 3.8 feet by 3.9 feet. Edvard painted what stirred his mind, and this art piece touches my soul, it is one of six of the same scene. It is painted in thick layers, in vertical strokes and has a hazy feel and an emotional power. We are sharing a scene that is the veil of Edvard's memory, the death of his sister, Johanna at fifteen. The suffering girl is propped up on a pillow, she seems poised to me . As the girl looks to the side perhaps looking at death coming, a mourner clutches her hands, a woman maybe a family member. I feel a loving bond in the anguish of the bowed head and despair. The painting captures the ravage of disease, it is a haunting scene. The use color and style is Expressionism, pigments of white, marine and vermillion red, ochre, emerald green, yellows, and cobalt blue can be detected. Oh, that thick blanket must be so warm and heavy. I feel the girl's pain, and the acceptance of her death, her emptiness.
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