The Kiss

Edvard Munch 1863–1944

The Kiss (1897) by Edvard Munch. Its palette is led by charcoal (#261c1f, 65%) and graphite (#384146, 14%), with accents of muted azure teal, putty and bone. Overall the canvas is dark, muted and warm.

Color note

Munch used color for emotion rather than description: in The Scream the sky burns orange and red over a blue-black fjord. He returned to the subject several times, in paint, pastel and print.

Palette

#261c1f MG 222 charcoal 64.7% of canvas
#384146 MG 218 graphite 14.4% of canvas
#5b6a70 MG 216 dark grey 9.4% of canvas
#5c373a MG 144 dark crimson sienna 6.3% of canvas
#7d959a MG 081 muted azure teal 3.2% of canvas
#ae937e MG 173 putty 1.1% of canvas
#c8c2b5 MG 171 bone 0.8% of canvas

Color families

Black 46%, Gray 24%, Brown 24%, Blue 6%, Red 0%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.32
Contrast: 0.38
Vividness: 0.016
Warmth: +0.33
Complexity: 49 cells
Hue range: 0.64
Focus: 0.09

Composition

71% of the visual weight is in the left half, 68% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.24 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 76% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 29% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1897
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 99.0 × 81.0 cm
Genre: portrait
Collection: Munch Museum, Oslo Municipality

Download the pin · Save to Pinterest

More by Edvard Munch

The Scream, 1893
Vampire, 1893
Jealousy, 1895
Puberty, 1895