The painter Edvard Munch was a tormented man, who had a very dark childhood. “His adult private life was in disarray, but he managed to express all his anguish through his creative and disturbing paintings” (Belmont 1). As you take a look at his personal life and how things turned out for him, you will discover many things that will surprise you. It all started when Edvard Munch was born on December 12, 1863 in Loten, Norway. He grew up with a father who was a military doctor. His mother died when he was five from tuberculosis. A few years later, in 1877, his sister Sophie died of the same illness with one of her brothers. His only brother later married, but died soon after. His only sister, Karen, took over the house (Edvard 1). These are obviously some pretty depressing things that happened to him. He was stunned by what had happened. Especially at his young age, he didn't know what to think about it. These deaths could explain his thinking at the time of his paintings. After growing up, he entered a technical school to become an engineer. Since his family members fell ill and died, the illnesses were passed down to him. He was a very sick man during his life. He abandoned his studies to become a painter because his illnesses interrupted his studies. In 1881, Munch enrolled at the Royal School of Art and Design (Edvard 1). It was there that he painted his first self-portrait. In 1885, he worked on one of his paintings which would soon become very popular. It was called "The Sick Child". After exhibiting his work at the Exhibition of Industries and Arts, Munch decided to study in Paris at the Bonnat School of Fine Arts in 1889. The same year , his father dies, a new death in Edvard's life. . He returned to Norway following the death of his father, then returned to Paris for the remainder of his schooling (Edvard 1st). After all the deaths in his family, Munch began to abuse alcohol. This took a toll on his body by deteriorating his health. After his studies, Edvard moved to Berlin. He was invited to an exhibition and became the subject of bitter controversy. After about a week the exhibition was closed.