Julius Meier-Graefe
1894
Edvard Munch, famous for making everyone scream, turns his psychological lens on art critic Julius Meier-Graefe in this 1894 portrait. Meier-Graefe was a huge champion of modern art, and Munch paints him looking like a stylish but slightly weary bohemian intellectual with his tall top hat and dangling cigarette. Notice the swirling, scratchy background and the intense, red-rimmed eyes—Munch injects a sense of anxiety that feels very familiar to fans of his darker works. It captures the vibe of the Berlin art scene perfectly: dapper on the outside, turbulent on the inside.
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