“The Scream,” (Norwegian “Skrik”) by artist Edvard Munch
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“Just as Leonardo Da Vinci studied human anatomy and dissected corpses, so I was trying to dissect souls.” -- Edvard Munch
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The artist Edvard Munch might be one of the most misunderstood artists of our time as his picture, The Scream, has been crassly commercialized and the profound meaning trivialized by critics who have dowsed the subversive spark which characterized this and so many of his works.
“'I was out walking with two friends—the sun was setting—suddenly the sky turned blood red—I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence ... there was blood and tongues of fire above the blue—black fjord and the city—my friends walked on, and I stood there trembling with angst....and I sensed an endless scream passing through nature.” Those were the words of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch {1863-1944} on how he was inspired to paint one of the classic pictures of Modernism and the sheer despair of a person literary cracking up.
Unfortunately, this picture has been crudely caricatured by its image being reproduced on mugs, on vodka bottles, and in endless horror movies. It is certainly true that this picture can be interpreted in an infinite number of ways, but I don't think it deserves to become just part of a prop for stand-up comedians who find it amusing and lightweight. Daniel Ogan once amused his Russian students by saying, "I'm selling wallpaper with pictures of 'The Scream' on it." It might actually sell well here! Who knows!?
When I use the pictures of Munch in English lessons I receive different responses. Some students have never heard of him. Others who are shown his pictures are amazed that he could sell any of his pictures. A director of a computer games company Akella once told me "I can't imagine anyone wanting to collect such pictures. They are so depressing. If you put them up on your wall they'd would hardly cheer you up."
A student of the history of art, Natasha attended the first exhibition of Munch's art held by the State Tretyakov Gallery in 2019. She told me "The color of those paintings is very striking but when I first saw some of those pictures they made me shudder with fear. There is something terrifying about some of them."
The Russian teacher of English language Oksana Cheborateva stated, "The Scream is the classic picture of modernity. It depicts the helplessness of a person against overwhelming problems which he can't handle."
Perhaps the best way to begin any interpretation would be to just hear Munch himself. It is important to understand that Munch painted, edged and drew many versions of 'The Scream' and not just one. He wanted his painting to be understood in relation to his other paintings which he saw as a series which would depict a spiritual narrative or 'diary of the soul.' He thought that his pictures were alive and endowed with a soul of their own. He called them 'his children.' He stated, "I don't paint what I see but what I saw; the story of the tribulation of the soul."
Munch didn't want to paint pictures for money or to satisfy the public. He argued that "We do not want to paint pictures to be hung on drawing room walls. We want to create or at least lay the foundations of, an art that arrests and engages. An art of one's innermost heart." Therefore, he did not hesitate to paint pictures titled 'Melancholy,' {1894 }, 'Anxiety' {1894}, and 'Death in the Sickroom'{1893}.
The early life of Munch serves to indicate why some of his pictures can be dark, and disturbing. Munch stated 'Illness, insanity and death were the angels that hovered over my cradle." Munch's mother died when he was five, he witnessed the early death of his sister Sophia from tuberculosis, and his sister Laura was detained in the local psychiatric hospital. Another sister died at 33. His family were tyrannized by his father's strong religious views and Munch's artistic ambitions were firmly opposed by his father. Munch himself was asthmatic, bronchitic and later an alcoholic who suffered two breakdowns and often had to be hospitalized. There was so much misfortune in Munch's family that he genuinely thought it was cursed. When another brother died soon after his marriage Munch expected his own imminent death.
Munch was once stalked by a woman who claimed to be madly in love with him. Tulla Larsen threatened to kill herself if he did not meet her. So Munch agreed to meet her. He politely began to explain why he could not marry her because of his terrible illness. The woman is thought to have raised a pistol to her head and Munch struggled to remove the pistol. The pistol went off and hit Munch's finger. His finger was deformed for the rest of his life and he always concealed it with a glove. Munch was in agony for weeks! He later learnt that this woman was simply trying to provoke two of her lovers who she thought were not paying sufficient attention to her.
After this traumatic incident Munch became even more remote from human company. But for some reason he miraculously defied death and lived on till 81!
The dreadful poverty which Munch often suffered from is indicated by the fact that he painted one of the World's masterpieces 'The Scream', 1893, on a piece of cardboard. This is because he could not afford to buy a canvas at the time and just scavenged some cardboard from rubbish tins (Amer. ‘garbage cans’) or shops.
The story that Munch himself tells is that while he was walking along a road with two friends and saw the sky with blood and then the clouds dripped with blood and he felt immense sadness weighing on his heart which brought him pain... He stopped to lean on the railing while two of his friends went by. His two friends did not notice him. Then he heard a scream pass through nature. Munch recollected that the experience or vision happened on a high point in Ekeberg which is east of Oslo. Although you might think the person is screaming on a pier or bridge this was not the case. All the figures are on a path. What is more, this scream was not metaphorical. It was real! Within the vicinity of this high point was the location of two notorious buildings: a slaughterhouse and a psychiatric hospital. Munch often visited his sister at hospital. The scream of animals being slaughtered mingled with the screaming of patients in hospitals. This must had made a vivid impression on the artist. It is a dreadful thing to witness when you hear a person in such mental agony.
I recall visiting a patient in Gartnavel Psychiatric Hospital in Glasgow where I saw young woman running around the ward screaming and in tears. What is worse is that most people don't understand the agony of a patient with say, schizophrenia unless they themselves have experienced it. One such patient told me "You really have to experience this condition yourself to fully understand it."
Because Munch himself had experienced such frightening experiences such as delusions and thoughts of persecution he could relate to the agony of the patients. But the two men who walk by could not. Whether they are just indifferent to the person screaming on the beach is up to the viewer. They might simply have not noticed.
Munch would sometimes seek escape by visiting cafes. When he entered one cafe he thought some waiters or guests were shooting him poisonous glances so he would pack up his bags and leave and go to another café. Then he thought he sensed the same hostile atmosphere and again quickly left. And this might go on and on!
But is there anything positive about this picture? There is indeed. Firstly in the sea you will notice two ships sailing in the sea. So this picture conveys symbols of serenity and calm. So if there is terror in this picture there is also calm. Although the two men on the path are ignoring the person screaming, nature itself has witnessed his suffering and is not indifferent. And according to Celtic mythology, when bad deeds and suffering happens, nature itself protests about this injustice.
Once my late father told me that you could see the coast of Norway from the coast near Banff in Scotland on a very clear transparent day. I looked but I never saw Norway. But one thing I can vouch for is that I have heard the scream which Munch depicted. I don't fully grasp the immense misery but I can hear it in hospitals in Scotland and on the streets of Moscow. I have recently seen a homeless woman screaming at cars who she thought were trying to run her over.
When I hear that students of the history of Art in Moscow have to accept only one interpretation of a picture my heart shudders. Teachers have to allow students to offer their own impression rather than just accept the teacher's views. So if a student interprets the picture of 'The Scream' as a visualization of Nietzsche's cry that 'God is dead and we have nothing to replace him' or wish to mention how Dostoyevsky was Munch's favorite writer and inspired him then fair enough!
A teacher should also point out that contrary to the dominant view Munch's works are not all dark, depressing and gloomy but cover all aspects of human life: love, friendship, anxiety, alienation, and peak experiences. It is just that many art books you come across tend to publish his most depressing pictures. For instance, you can see a tender portrait of his sister Inger painted in 1892, Young Woman on the Veranda in 1924, and a wonderful picture of the Sun blazing away {1909- 1911}.
“Young Woman on the Veranda” (Norw. “Ung kvinne på verandaen”)
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Munch's works don't shy away from the facts that life is pain, there is suffering, and we all must ultimately face death.
Note that death is dealt with differently in diverse places. For example, the attitude of people in Britain about death is terrible. The British do all they can to distance themselves and deny the unfolding tragedy of death. This is reflected in English idioms which I'm still hearing. Instead of saying this person died a certain way specifically, they mention indirectly that "He passed away..." or "He hit the bucket..." or that "He died peacefully." This last indirect comment is sometimes used when the contrary was the case. For example, how can a person dying in agony from AIDS die peacefully?
The good thing about Munch is he did not pull punches. He was direct and unapologetic. Although he frankly confessed that his pictures might be viewed as egotistical he also hoped his pictures would mirror and acknowledge the suffering of so many other people. That is the pain of the mentally distressed, the sick, the dying, and the abandoned.
His pictures are more than just a scream. Instead, they are meant to give a voice to those who are otherwise never heard.
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Recommended reading: It is worth reading Sue Prideaux's book “Edward Munch: Behind the Scream,’ New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2007.