Opening exhibitions is not unfamiliar for Europe’s royalty, but opening three displays on the same evening is probably rarer. However, Queen Sonja did just that when she made the trip to the new Munch Museum in Oslo.
The director welcomed the Norwegian Queen in the museum’s Grand Hall. Her Majesty officially opened three new exhibitions, which in the future will adorn the vast new museum dedicated to the Norwegian artist Edward Munch. These three exhibitions consist of contemporary art dedicated to and inspired by Munch’s art.
Following the Queen’s opening, the audience received a more in-depth lecture about what they could expect from the new exhibitions. This was followed by several musical features. Queen Sonja was also given a tour of the three collections.
Queen Sonja met many artists, and they felt it was important to show Her Majesty the first edition of the “MUNCH Triennale.” It is an ambitious group exhibition for contemporary art, which will be launched with a new socially relevant theme every third year. In this first issue, “The Machine is us,” a total of 26 contemporary artists “reflect in different ways on how new technology affects us, both as individuals and as a community,” according to the Royal House.
The second exhibition explores how people relate to each other and their surroundings. The third and final exhibition Queen Sonja saw was a desire to highlight newly established and local artists and mediators. In this first exhibition of its kind, the public is able to move through a pulsating installation with sound and light.
Queen Sonja opened the brand new Munch Museum in Oslo last year. At the time, the Queen said: “Our new Munch museum is considerably larger than the old one, and yet it is already filled with art. Now the house will also be filled with people, and the audience’s mind and soul will be filled with experiences. The world comes to Oslo to see Munch’s art. In his spirit, we joyfully share him with the rest of the world.”
