Edvard Munch

Johanna Munch (née Kinck), the sitter's widow and sister-in-law of Edvard Munch, Oslo, (a gift from the artist, thence by descent in the artist's family; sale: Sotheby's London, 13 June 2006, lot 121)
Purchased by the previous owner at the above sale

Gösta Svenæus, Edvard Munch: Im männlichen Gehirn II, Lund, 1973, p. 10, fig. 5, illustrated (as Der Künstlers Bruder Andreas)
Gerd Woll, Edvard Munch: Complete Paintings. Catalogue raisonné, London, 2009, vol. I, p. 96, no. 78, catalogued & illustrated

Overall this painting is in good stable condition and ready to hang. It is executed on card which is laid on board. There are a few scattered spots of craquelure and the paint surface is uneven in areas. Otherwise the surface appears to be stable. Examination under ultra-violet light reveals an uneven varnish and scattered lines of minor infillings, notably in the figure's legs and the light pigments through the window. The colours in reality are somewhat richer with less of a yellow-brown cast than in the catalogue illustration. Held in a gilt frame with a white rebate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Painted circa 1882-83, this spontaneous oil sketch depicts the artist's younger brother Peter Andreas Munch seated reading in the brothers' bedroom. As a child, unlike Edvard, Andreas enjoyed good health and thrived at school. He went on to train as a doctor, and his prospects seemed set fair when he married Johanna, the daughter of a headmaster, in April 1895. But tragedy struck soon after the marriage when Andreas died suddenly in November of the same year, aged just 30. His widow gave birth to their daughter some months later. Christened Andrea, Munch provided for his niece thoughout his life and gave this painting of Andreas to his sister-in-law as a keep-sake, where it remained until sold in these rooms in 2006.

Although Munch was admitted to the Royal School of Art and Design in 1881, he relied on members of his immediate family to model for him. And he painted Andreas on several occasions in the early 1890s. Of his brother's artistic demands, Andreas complained at the time: 'We all ... have to sit as models, the place is littered with half-finished pictures that bear witness to his proficiency as a painter, but also to lack of follow through' (quoted in Sue Prideaux, Edvard Munch, Behind the Scream, 2005, p. 47), a working practice which earnt Munch both approbation and criticisism during his life.  

The present work was painted in the family flat at Olaf Ryes Plass in Grünerløkka, a new suburb on the eastern edge of Kristiania (Oslo). There Edvard and Andreas shared a room. Edvard painted four or five portraits of Andreas at this time, works that underline the sitter's studious nature (see fig. 1 for another painting that Munch painted of Andreas the same year). Munch included few props in these oils, producing instead compositions that express the family's straitened circumstances. Silhouetted against the window, in the present work Andreas strikes a nonchalant pose.