Buy now | Our best subscription plan now has a special price

The concept

To say that Munch expressed his inner feelings in his works would be an understatement. The story of the artist is now well known: he painted to earn a living, never married, never had children. He was known to be extremely emotional and always seemed nervous. He led a cruel life and lost almost his entire family when he was 32 years old. But what inspired him to paint such a gruesome skeletal face that screams at the viewer? His diary entry from January 22, 1892 helps the viewer better understand:

“One evening, I was walking along a path, the city was on one side and the fjord below. I felt tired and sick. I stopped and looked out over the fjord – the sun was setting and the clouds were turning blood red. I felt a cry through nature; I thought I heard the cry. I painted this picture, painted the clouds like real blood. The color screamed. It became The Scream.

The best of Express Premium

Prime

Prime

Prime

Prime

(Photo: Pixabay)

Although the artist himself shed some light on the concept of the painting, several scholars claim that the abnormally orange sky reflects Munch’s psychological reaction to his sister’s commitment to a nearby insane asylum. At the time of painting, the artist’s manic-depressive sister, Laura Catherine, was a patient in the mental asylum at the foot of Ekeberg. In 1978, scholar Robert Rosenblum suggested that the strange skeletal creature in the foreground of the painting was inspired by a Peruvian mummy, which Munch might have seen at the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris. Several other “mummies” references have appeared over the years in order to give the horrified skeletal expression a story.

“It could only have been painted by a madman”

A discovery about the painting helps disprove many theories. A small inscription of eight words written in pencil found in the upper left corner of the frame created much speculation after it was first exhibited in Norway in October 1895. The words, ‘Could only have been painted by a madman‘ written in Norwegian are not quite visible to the naked eye, but certainly capture the interest. It was then assumed that a visitor had engraved these words on the board. But it was public opinion when the painting was exhibited that prompted Munch to write these eight words about his own work. According to curators at the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Norway, Munch added the phrase to his work two years after his first exhibition. They allege that the handwriting matches Munch’s and coincides with his mental state which has deteriorated over time. Researchers believe the reason he called himself “crazy” was because he felt attacked for being mentally ill and felt that public opinion of him and his work was too harsh.

Flights

Although people are hard on the artist and the artwork, no one could stop the popularity that the painting has gained over time. just like Leonardo DeVinci mona-lisa, The Scream was the target of several thefts. Unfortunately, damage was done to the artwork because of this. The first theft incident took place in 1994, when two men broke into the National Gallery in Oslo, stole the painting and left a note saying. “Thank you for the bad security”. They even demanded a ransom of one million US dollars. Norwegian police refused to pay the ransom and, through a chain operation with British police, recovered the painting. In 2004, the 1910 version of The Scream was stolen from the Munch Museum in Oslo by two masked men. In 2005, the government offered a reward of approximately US$313,500 for information on the location of the paintings. For obvious security reasons, the Munch Museum was closed for ten months and the painting was finally recovered in 2006. The police, however, never revealed how they managed to recover it and from where.

Influence on modern and popular culture

Munch would never have thought that a painting people once objected to would become a symbol of modern art years later. He not only inspired emojis but also several movie posters like Kevin McCallister’s (Macaulay Culkin) expression in the 1990 movie Alone at home. It can also be seen on the cover of some editions of Arthur Janov’s 1970 book The Primal Cry. MGMT album cover little dark age shows a figure resembling the subject of the painting, although made up like a clown.

Despite the shocking use of color palette and recreation of the dramatic moment Munch experienced that night, The Scream will forever be the symbol of Mental Health and how humans deal with change and modern society. It is an evergreen depiction of the inner turmoil one is going through. The psychological impact of the changing environment is wonderfully captured by Munch in this silent but screaming skeletal face.

Next step in behind the art: Why the painting of Jacques-Louis David Napoleon crossing the Alps considered the perfect propaganda tool in 1801? What is the real story behind the image of Napoleon?

📣 For more lifestyle news, follow us on instagram | Twitter | Facebook and don’t miss the latest updates!