“In 2006, the first Olivia restaurant opened at Aker Brygge in Oslo. But our history goes back even further; until Anne Koppang, Gry Holm and Kristin Gjelseth, or "the three ladies" as we like to call them, wanted an Italian in the family - preferably an Aunt Olivia from Piedmont. And since neither of them had Italian family before, they found that the next best thing was to open an Italian restaurant... which later turned out to be exactly what they wanted in the first place: Italian family.

Since 2006, a lot of exciting things have happened in Olivia. We have opened several restaurants in Norway, Sweden and Finland. All our restaurants have distinctive touches and unique qualities, inspired by our favorite cities in Italy; Rome, Naples, Venice, Milan, Portofino, Florence, Palermo, Parma and Bologna. But no matter where you visit us, the experience should be the same: authentic Italian food in cozy surroundings, with candles and burning fireplaces. With attentive and knowledgeable waiters and chefs with one clear common vision: to serve the best pizza outside of Italy.”

“- Edvard Munch is about not accepting conventional rules, about fighting against opposition, about never giving up. The building is there, it has a powerful presence, and it is part of the city. It says, ‘Okay, here I am. I hold the legacy of the most important artist in Norway’s history, and I gaze entranced at Oslo and the fjord because it is the city and its collective dreams that have built me.’

These words were spoken by Juan Herreros, founding partner of the Spanish architecture practice Estudio Herreros. Together with his partner Jens Richter he has designed MUNCH in Bjørvika. The foundation stone for the new museum was laid autumn 2016, after a long and heated debate on both design and location – not unlike that which preceded the building of the original museum at Toyen.