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The Scream

Edvard Munch Norwegian
1895
Not on view
The extreme familiarity of this image today makes it hard to realize how shocking it and other works by Munch were when they were created slightly over a hundred years ago. Munch's art represented his own emotions, mostly the darker ones of fear, dread, loneliness, and sexual longing, with extraordinary expressiveness. The screaming figure personifies existential horror. A precursor of this image is a drawing of a man (Munch himself) on a similar bridge, with a blood-red sky above. A text accompanying this drawing states: "I walked with two friends. Then the sun sank. Suddenly the sky turned as red as blood ... My friends walked on, and I was left alone, trembling with fear. I felt as if all nature were filled with one mighty unending shriek."

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Scream
  • Artist: Edvard Munch (Norwegian, Løten 1863–1944 Ekely)
  • Date: 1895
  • Medium: Lithograph
  • Dimensions: Image: 14 1/16 x 9 5/16 in. (35.7 x 23.6 cm)
    Sheet: 20 1/4 x 15 5/8 in. (51.4 x 39.7 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Scofield Thayer, 1982
  • Object Number: 1984.1203.1
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

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Andreas Schwarz, Edvard Munch Norwegian, Drypoint; first state of two (Woll)
Andreas Schwarz
Edvard Munch
Otto Felsing
1906
Herbert Esche's Daughter, Edvard Munch Norwegian, Drypoint in greyish black ink
Herbert Esche's Daughter
Edvard Munch
1905
Pernille Kirkeby II (Little Norwegian Girl Running), Edvard Munch Norwegian, Lithograph
Pernille Kirkeby II (Little Norwegian Girl Running)
Edvard Munch
1908–9
Reclining Nude I
Edvard Munch
1920
The Pretenders: The Last Hour, Edvard Munch Norwegian, Woodcut
The Pretenders: The Last Hour
Edvard Munch
1917

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