Edvard Munch

Edvard Munch (December 12, 1863 – January 23, 1944) was a Norwegian expressionist painter and printmaker. His intense, evocative treatment of anguish greatly influenced development of German expressionism in the early 20th century.

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December 12 - 1863 - January 23 - 1944 - Norwegian - Expressionist - 20th century

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The Scream (1893; originally called Despair), Munch's best known painting, is regarded as an icon of existential anguish. As with many of his works, he painted several versions of it. The Scream is one of the pieces in a series titled The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of life, love, fear, death and melancholy. It was stolen from the Munch-museum in Oslo, Norway, August 22. 2004, and unsubstantiated rumors record it as being destroyed by the thieves.

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The Scream - 1893

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The Frieze of Life themes recur throughout Munch's work, in paintings such as The Sick Child (1886, portrait of his deceased sister Sophie), (1893–94), (1894), and The Bridge. The latter shows limp figures with featureless or hidden faces, over which loom the threatening shapes of heavy trees and brooding houses. Munch portrayed women either as frail, innocent sufferers or as lurid, life-devouring vampires. Munch analysts say this reflects his sexual anxieties.

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1886 - 1893 - 94

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