Edvard Munch wrote secret message on The Scream, experts confirm
Art experts had previously debated whether the message was scrawled by a disgruntled critic
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Artist Edvard Munch hid a message on his famous painting The Scream, it has been confirmed.
The words “Can only have been painted by a madman” had been the cause of serious debate in the art world, with experts arguing over whether the Norwegian artist wrote the message himself or if the painting was vandalised by an unimpressed viewer.
The barely visible sentence was written in pencil in the top left-hand corner.
New tests conducted by The National Museum of Norway – using technology to analyse the handwriting and compare it with the writing in the artist’s letters and diaries – have now confirmed the words were written by Munch himself.
“The writing is without a doubt Munch's own,” museum curator Mai Britt Guleng said.
“The handwriting itself, as well as events that happened in 1895, when Munch showed the painting in Norway for the first time, all point in the same direction.”
Appearing on the Today show on BBC Radio 4, she explained that “curiously enough” there had been little speculation over the inscription until recently.
“[The message] can be read both as a statement of vulnerability [but also] showing us the painter who loved to provoke,” she said.
Munch created four versions of The Scream – two in paint and two in pastel – along with a lithograph stone from which a number of prints were made.
When the first version was first unveiled, it provoked heavy criticism along with gossip surrounding the state of Munch’s mental health.
It is believed that the artist, who was hurt by the reaction, added his statement to the painting after its first exhibition.
He was hospitalised after suffering a nervous breakdown in 1908.
The Scream will be exhibited with several other of Munch’s works in the newly constructed National Museum of Norway from 2022.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments