Origin and Inspiration

The figure of a solitary woman on a shoreline was first used by Munch in a painting from 1891-92 titled "The Lonely Ones," which has since been lost. However, the theme was revisited multiple times in his career, with Young Woman on the Beach being a notable example.

Composition and Interpretation

In Young Woman on the Beach. the focus is solely on the female figure, unlike in "The Lonely Ones" where a man is also present. The woman is depicted with her back turned, lost in a reverie as she looks out to sea. Her white dress shimmers in the wan light, and her hair gently waves in the evening breeze. The absence of a visible horizon emphasizes the vastness of the natural world and heightens the sense of her fragility and the precariousness of life.

Technique

The print was made in Paris during an intensive period of printmaking for Munch. It is a burnished aquatint, created using zinc plates pre-prepared with aquatint and delicately modulated highlights scraped into the aquatint with a burnisher. This technique is similar to mezzotint and resulted in one of Munch's rarest and most sought-after graphics. After 1897, Munch never worked in this medium again.

Color Variants

There are eleven known impressions of Young Woman on the Beach. each inked by hand à la poupée in different shades and colors. These variations produce subtle shifts in meaning, ranging from a more euphoric depiction with the girl bathed in the light of the setting sun to more somber moods where the figure appears fleeting and temporal against the deepening twilight.

Medium and Dimensions

The artwork is a burnished aquatint and drypoint in colors such as purple, blue, gray, and yellow, on cream laid Arches paper. The dimensions of the image/plate are 28.7 × 21.8 cm (11 5/16 × 8 5/8 in.), with the sheet measuring 44.5 × 31 cm (17 9/16 × 12 1/4 in.)

Current Status

The artwork is part of several collections, including the Art Institute of Chicago, where it is currently off view.