The Munch Museum in Oslo will open an exhibition titled “Edvard Munch and the Chocolate Factory” in May, featuring a series of large-scale paintings by Edvard Munch created in 1923 for the canteen of the Freia chocolate factory. Known as the Freia Frieze, these works depict summer life in a Norwegian coastal town and have never before been shown to the public outside the factory. The exhibition runs from May 21 to November 10 and includes related sketches from the museum’s collection.
The exhibition matters because it highlights a little-known chapter of Munch’s career, focusing on his public commissions and his exploration of the boundaries between public and private art. It also provides a lens to examine the intersections of art, industry, and gender in interwar Norway, as Freia was a progressive employer with a largely female workforce. The show underscores how Munch’s work engaged with social themes, including workers’ rights and women’s campaigns for equality.