Art Analysis of “The Scream”

The Scream, 1893 by Edvard Munch

While The Scream is not a piece of art I would ever want to see hanging on the walls of my home, it is very iconic and fascinating. Edvard Munch was a Norwegian artist known for symbolism and expressionism. The original title for the painting is “Der Schrei der Natur”, translating to “The Scream of Nature”. It was originally created using pastels on cardboard, and there are four versions the artist made.

I would like to look at some of the elements of art that are used to making this painting come to life. The three major elements that I pull from this painting are the use of lines and colors. Together, it creates a sense of anxiety, despair, and insanity.

The painting depicts an abstracted landscape with a central figure, and two figures in the background. There are three main lines we see that make up the composition. The lines in the railing along the path giving context and distance. A wavy line used to separate the horizon and the water. And lastly, another wavy line is used to separate the water from the land on the right. These three primary lines give a sense of depth and shape to the overall painting. However, there are still more lines that can be seen within the painting used for different effects.

Alongside all of the main lines are smaller lines that extend outwards, like a shockwave. Next to the railing, you can see lines on the pathway. Amongst the horizon, you can see many smaller lines that ripple throughout the sky. Lastly, there are curving lines that are seen on the land. These lines seem to give me this sense of dynamic movement leading me to feelings of anxiety. These lines also help sperate the main colors of the artwork.

The colors play an important role an eliciting emotion from the viewer. The three main colors we see are brown, blue, and orange-red. The contrast of the colors between the brown road and the orange-red sky gives a sensation of energy. The blue water gives off a reflection of the sky adding to this effect.

The figure that we see in the front appears to be from out of this world. Its ambiguous race, age, and gender with an elongated face and distorted jaw give it an eerie look. It is covering its ears as if everything around it is loud and overwhelming. The simplicity of the artwork and dynamic lines with contrasting colors helps to pull strong emotion from the viewer.

The backstory of the art is from a memory that Edvard had when he was walking down this path with two friends when he felt very tired and ill. His friends kept on walking as he stopped for a rest. Edvard then had a strong feeling of anxiety and felt a scream that pierced through all of nature. While I can’t relate exactly to this, I have had bouts of anxiety and sadness where I have wanted to be alone. The piece was created in Norway, and it now sits in a gallery in Oslo, Norway.

The artwork is too creepy for me to want to own a copy of it in my home. Going to the bathroom at 3 a.m. and seeing this entity would keep me up at night. However, the strong feelings and emotions of anxiety and fear that I feel from this painting goes to show how impressive this art really is. I hope you have enjoyed my analysis of The Scream and can feel the same feelings I get when viewing it.

Source

Edvard Munch – The Scream (1893) 2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxP5e_ghWfM&gt; [Accessed 18 September 2020].

Edvardmunch.org. 2020. The Scream, 1893 By Edvard Munch. [online] Available at: <https://www.edvardmunch.org/the-scream.jsp&gt; [Accessed 18 September 2020].

Totally History. 2020. The Scream By Edvard Munch – Facts & History Of The Painting. [online] Available at: <http://totallyhistory.com/the-scream/&gt; [Accessed 18 September 2020].