Thursday - My introduction to Edvard Munch
As I woke this morning I had a sense of control, a calmness that I have not experienced in a while. I had Questa notte by Ludovico Einaudi stuck in my head so I decided to stick it on as I caught up on the latest news stories. Edvard Munch’s The Scream was sold today at a sickening $120m. I remember seeing that painting in Oslo, it is a lot smaller than I expected but the detail and the shades of red and oranges of the landscape as you study it up close is immense.
In 2006 during a trip to Norway, my Auntie pulled up outside this deep blood orange house sat on the edge of a lake overlooking the beautiful landscapes of Asgardstand. This is in fact the summer house of Edvard Munch and my first introduction to him and the significance of his work. I knew of The Scream painting from seeing it in books and being heavily referenced in film, but I never knew the artist who painted it nor the original name of the painting itself.
The small quaint house is now a museum and apparently everything is left to how it was when Munch came to paint.
The National Gallery, Oslo holds one of the four editions of The Scream and it’s a nice challenge to try and take a picture of the painting without looking too obvious. I just gave up in the end as the guard knew my game before I reached for my phone.
I will go back this year, and I will be successful!
/Lodge
