The king Munch

While Norway, a constitutional monarchy, has been ruled for 34 years by King Harald V, in the art world, the country remains undeniably under the reign of one superstar painter, albeit departed more than 80 years ago: Edvard Munch (1863-1944). In Oslo, an enormous—though not particularly  beautiful—building dedicated to the father of “The Scream” was inaugurated in 2021. It houses the largest collection of works by Norway’s only globally recognized artist. (See here a report about the Munch Museum).

Trondheim

Edvard Munch

On a much smaller scale, further north, Norway’s third-largest city, Trondheim, inaugurated a private museum on February 15, 2025: PoMo, a 4,000-square-meter institution dedicated to contemporary art. And yet, at the center of this remarkable institution, an entire room is devoted to the Norwegian “king” of modernity, Munch.

 Scream forever

Edvard Munch

The space showcases fifteen famous prints by the artist, including a rare version of “The Scream.” Munch obsessively repeated his motifs, making certain changes each time. The grouping on display comes from a set hand-colored by the artist himself and acquired just over a year ago by the Reitan family from another Norwegian collection, that of the Gundersen family.

Monica Reitan

Trondheim, meanwhile, is where Monica and Robert Reitan first met as children. They later married, moved to Oslo and spent over thirty years building an art collection. Monica studied art history, while Robert successfully expanded the family business in retail. Though they have since separated, they never forgot their roots in Trondheim. That’s why the former couple decided to open PoMo together in their hometown.

India Mahdavi

For the interior design of this early 20th-century former post office, they turned to the French designer India Mahdavi. True to her signature, she injected the space with a strong dose of vibrant colors—like with the majestic orange staircase that runs through the entire building. “I sought to create a visual stimulus in order to create a space that feels welcoming and joyful,” explains Mahdavi, for whom this is her first-ever museum commission.

Andy Warhol

Curatorial vision

More generally, what is striking about this small institution is the coherence of its curatorial vision. The ensemble is composed of various loans, pieces from the Reitans’ personal collection, as well as acquisitions made specifically for the new institution.

Josh Smith

Josh Smith

Not far from the Munch gallery, a room is dedicated to Josh Smith (born in 1976), an American painter known for his compositions of thick, colorful lines. We find here, among others, a 2017 depiction of the Grim Reaper against a sunset background—a piece that in some ways echoes “The Scream.”

Imhof/Piranesi

Anne Imhof

In another section, we find the work of Anne Imhof (born in 1978), the internationally acclaimed German performance artist, famous for her unsettling, urban environments made up of graffiti on plexiglass. At her request, these works are exhibited alongside a more “classic” expression of anxiety in the form of 18th-century prints by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778), from the Reitan collection, depicting imaginary, labyrinthine prisons.

Piranese

Peder Lund

Visitors to PoMo are greeted by a large assembly of crudely shaped, faux naif sculptures by Franz West (1947-2012). The artist was well known to the Reitans, explains the Oslo gallerist Peder Lund, who has long advised the former couple.

Franz West

Franz West, Philippe Parreno

West loved to dialogue with other artists: Hanging above his sculptures are “clouds” (an allusion to Andy Warhol) in the form of bubbles by the French artist Philippe Parreno.

Robert Reitan

An enthusiastic Robert Reitan confessed that he is motivated by the desire to “share the same joy I feel when I travel around the world.” In fact, the PoMO already has ambitions to expand.

The museum will soon host an exhibition of Picasso’s late works.

Simone Leigh

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