When doing analysis of Edvard Munch’s painting Girls on the Bridge, the thing we must consider first at foremost is the bridge itself. The bridge is one of the major focal points of the painting and is in the title, but what is the bridge’s purpose in the painting? Bridges are often portrayed as a representation of change of some sort of transition. Usually this transition is a transition into paradise, or a better place such as heaven. However, in Girls on the Bridge, I feel as though this bridge is a symbol for something completely opposite. Some may also conclude that bridge symbolize the difficult decisions in one’s life, that may put us in an emotional junction. This theory brings up an interesting idea in relation to the girls in the painting. Three of the girls are gazing into the mirror that is the water perhaps looking within for some sort of knowledge or understanding. On the other hand, the other girl is shown as completely emotionless due to her lack of face. Another interesting aspect to the painting is the road. Similarly to Munch’s more famous painting, The Scream, the road and landscape begin to merge together towards what becomes the vanishing point of the painting. Going along with that, another interesting comparison between Girls on the Bridge and The Scream is how the roads are going in opposite directions almost like the image we see here is preceding The Scream. I would like to expand on this theory, especially using the girl in front who is not facing the water. I believe that this girl is meant to become the screaming figure. This girl is not able to look within herself and find the true meaning in life, so unfortunately she gives into the temptations of the corrupt and modern world. This girl is dressed in all white in Girls on the Bridge and becomes consumed by the darkness in The Scream as she is shown in all black. Overall, I feel as though Munch is using these girls and this bridge to represent the choices society makes as a whole, and that Munch generally believes these choices are the wrong ones and are leading to the downfall of society.

The figures, the central aspect of the painting, are drawn in the central vertical axis of the painting, and their heads are lined up with the central horizontal axis of the painting.  This draws your eyes to the middle immediately.  The water to the left is reflective, and serves as a mirror to the landscape.  All of the girls’ identities are anonymous, as all save one of them are turned away towards the water.  The one girl whose face is visible has her features blurred, and this emphasizes the ability to place yourself within the painting.  The dusk highlights the nostalgia and reflective characteristics of the painting, and the twisting and swirling of color and texture in the road add on to that.

The painting evokes a feeling of continuity and passage of time. The diagonal perspective draws attention to the girls on the bridge. The smooth brush strokes gives the illusion of continuity as the bridge seems to continue on in the canvas and extend forever. The lack of detail in the painting highlights the painter’s intent to look at the painting as a whole and not at a specific part. The blurred face of the woman facing the viewer gives a feeling of confusion. The viewer is not sure as to whether the woman is looking at him/her or simply looking away at another direction. On the other hand, the women giving their backs to the viewer imply departure and moving away in time and space.

“Girls on the Bridge” by Edvard Munch was in fact a series of paintings of the same subject with minor variations between each individual piece. After research, it is unclear whether the ekphrastic poem by Derek Mahon was inspired solely by the image printed in “Voices in the Gallery,” by another work from the series, or by the series as a whole.  Regardless, we will focus our analysis on the specific painting presented in the textbook.  This work of art was completed in 1905 using oil on canvas and measures 126 x 126 centimeters. Upon research, the exact title of the painting could not be verified. The textbook refers to the Munch work as “Girls on the Bridge,” but the official website of the museum which houses it, the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, documents the title as “Girls on a Pier.” I believe this may be due to a translation issue, since Munch was Norwegian and the original title was in his native language.  However, this ambiguity does not affect the power and implication of the image itself. Munch painted this piece in his typical Expressionist style, which employs distorted perspective, bold streaks of color, and swirling brushstrokes with the goal of expressing emotional experience rather than physical reality.  In “Girls on the Bridge,” the road swirls into the background in a way that is reminiscent of Munch’s “The Scream” painted 14 years earlier.  The vanishing point of the road along with the strong diagonal composition created by the railing of the bridge draws the viewer’s eye up the road and off the canvas. This seems to subtly pose the question, what is down the road? Three of the girls on the bridge peer into the reflective fjord; the water’s dark, reflective surface appears very still and untouchable which adds an eerie quality to the image. The girl in the foreground has no facial features, which is typical of the distorted reality of expressionist paintings. This makes the figure generic and relatable, and forces the audience to focus on the over arcing themes of the painting rather than the personal stories of each of the figures. The mood is calm but ominous and seems to stress the theme that as one familiar thing comes to an end- night falls, the road bends, adolescents grow older- the future of what lies ahead is unknown and threatening.