Beach with two Seated Women

Beach with Two Seated Women by Edvard Munch from 1904, held at the Art Museums of Bergen, depicts two women resting on a beach — a subject that combines the coastal setting of his Åsgårdstrand paintings with a quieter, more contemplative mood than his more dramatic beach compositions. Two women seated together on a beach, looking out to sea or in conversation, creates a social pairing that Munch explored in various configurations throughout his career. By 1904, his beach paintings had developed a confident command of the relationship between the figures and the expansive coastal environment — the women small against the sea and sky, their presence humanizing the elemental landscape.

Munch positions the two figures in the lower portion of the composition, allowing the sea and sky to dominate the upper two-thirds of the canvas. His handling of the women's clothing and the beach surface uses warm, muted tones contrasted against the cooler blues and grays of the coastal sea and sky.