Ali Smith on Edvard MunchThe Door of the Story
What happens when the endlessly inventive novelist Ali Smith turns her gaze to the art of Edvard Munch?
In The Door of the Story, Ali Smith brings her distinctive way of seeing to Edvard Munch’s work, uncovering unexpected connections and details – narratives that might otherwise remain unseen. Through her eyes, familiar works appear transformed, while lesser-known paintings, watercolours, drawings and prints open doors onto surprising and thought-provoking new stories, revealing the subtle, ever-renewing impact Munch's work has on the imagination.
Unprecedentedly, this is both an exhibition and a book. As visitors move through the exhibition’s seven rooms, they follow a fictional journey that unfolds across the book, the structure of which is rooted in findings from Munch's own library. Along the way, they are accompanied by excerpts from the book, read by Smith. The result is a compelling and playful dialogue between fiction and visual art, introducing a unique approach to storytelling in a museum setting.
The Door of the Story features 83 works from MUNCH’s collection, including paintings, prints, drawings and watercolours by Edvard Munch, alongside postcards and photographs. Several of the works on paper have never previously been exhibited.
The exhibition is curated in collaboration with Trine Otte Bak Nielsen (MUNCH), and the book is published by MUNCH Publishing.
About Ali Smith
Visual art is a recurring theme in the writing of Ali Smith (b. 1962, Inverness). Her fiction is rich with references to art and artists, which she approaches with a fresh, incisive curiosity and a gift for drawing unexpected connections.
Smith has described her encounter with Munch as a gamechanger for her writing. Her first engagement with the artist came through ‘So in the Spruce Forest’, written for the catalogue accompanying MUNCH's acclaimed exhibition Trembling Earth (2024). The essay prompted one critic to observe: 'It is a stroke of genius to ally with Smith, who in her highly original – alert and personal – approach to Munch's work shakes off any stiffened clichés’ (Ulekleiv, ‘Grønnskjær i blikket’, Kunstavisen, 3 May 2024). The essay was subsequently published as a standalone book by MUNCH Publishing.
Smith is the author of numerous award-winning books, including Artful, How to Be Both, the Seasonal Quartet, Gliff and Glyph. Four times shortlisted for the Booker Prize, she has received major literary awards including the Goldsmiths Prize, Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, Orwell Prize and the Dublin Literary Award.
