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Maison Oslo / Art history / The Scandinavian painters

Art history · 3 hours · English or French

From fjord to Scream: the Scandinavian painters, in order

In 1814 Norway had a constitution but hardly any painters. A century later it had given the world The Scream. This walk tells that story: the romantic landscapes that helped invent a nation, the realists who painted Kristiania's streets and parlours, the women who fought for a place at the easel, and the young Munch who broke with all of them. A café of the Kristiania bohemians, and two full hours in the National Museum.

Harriet Backer, Blue Interior, 1883
Photo: Harriet Backer · Public domain

Why you'll love it

  • Art history told as one story: romanticism, realism, the women painters, Munch's break
  • Two full hours in the National Museum, with a route chosen for this story
  • The Scream (1893), with the pencil line Munch wrote on it himself
  • Harriet Backer, Kitty Kielland and the painters the textbooks skipped
  • Coffee where Ibsen and the Kristiania bohemians held court
  • Headsets inside the museum, so you hear every word without crowding

What we will focus on

about 1.5 km, flat, mostly indoors

When: Sat–Sun 09:30 · Thu evening 17:00. On Thursdays the National Museum stays open until 20:00, so the walk also runs in the evening, from 17:00.

A selection of the places and buildings we explore, in no fixed order. The exact route varies with the day, the weather and opening hours.

  • The Grand Café
  • Karl Johans gate
  • The National Museum
  • Romantic landscapes
  • Realists and women painters
  • Munch's break
F

Your guide · Urban planner and founder of Maison Oslo · English · Français
Every walk is prepared with the makers, curators and sources behind each stop. Ask anything, in English or French.

Add-on

The pre-walk booklet

Key facts, timeline, glossary and reading list for this walk, to print at home or delivered printed to your hotel.

Good to know

Do I need to know about art?

No. The walk tells one story in order, so everything makes sense even if you have never been to a museum in Oslo.

Will we see the painted Scream?

Yes: the 1893 painting hangs permanently in the Munch room at the National Museum.

When does it run?

Saturdays and Sundays at 09:30, and Thursday evenings at 17:00, when the National Museum stays open until 20:00.

And the MUNCH museum?

See our walk 'Munch': two hours inside MUNCH on summer evenings, when the museum lets independent guides lead groups.

Read before you go

The MUNCH museum tower next to the Opera
Art history24 Sep 20263 min read

Is the Munch Museum worth it? An honest guide for 2026

MUNCH drew 775,000 visitors in 2025, but the building divides people and the museum faces cuts in 2026. Who should go, how long to spend, and what to see.
Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1893, National Museum, Oslo
Art history24 Sep 20263 min read

Where to see The Scream in Oslo (and why there is more than one)

The 1893 painted Scream hangs at the National Museum. MUNCH rotates its own versions. And the view that inspired it is a tram ride away. How to see all three, and when.

After the walk

Tell us what you loved.

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