Rare version of The Scream to offer a glimpse of Munch’s soul at exhibition
WORLD-FAMOUS PAINTING The Scream will form part of an exhibition bringing the “emotional impact” and European spirit of Edvard Munch to the UK.
The Norwegian painter and printmaker crafted the iconic image of despair in a time of hastening modernity.
Curators believe the life and talent of the artist will resonate with a UK audience living in another age of change, as the Munch’s works are brought to the British Museum.
The collection of prints are set to show the “soul” of the artist and his subjects, and offer a glimpse of Munch as a man. Curators have said the cosmopolitan spirit of the artist is a “fantastic message” for modern museum-goers.
His works will go on display at the British Museum in April in an exhibition featuring a rare version of The Scream, with its treatment of mental illness of huge relevance to a 21st century audience, according to curator Giulia Bartrum. She said: “His emotional impact is everything. Munch was keenly aware of mental illness, that was what he was trying to portray in his work.
“Munch’s work was to do with the inner workings of the human mind.
“That was what he was trying to express in his work, and that has huge resonance today.”
Born in Norway in 1863, Munch suffered the loss of his mother and sister when he was a child, and was brought up in a strict religious house before breaking free into Bohemianism.