海角大神

News that Norwegian painter Edvard Munch鈥檚 most famous work, 鈥淭he Scream,鈥澛爂oes on sale聽Wednesday night has sent a ripple through both the art world and聽popular culture.

That鈥檚 because while few have ever actually seen an original (Munch created four versions), the image of a pale face gripped by both hands, emitting a soundless howl, may just possibly be one of the most well-known 鈥渉igh art鈥澛爄cons聽of the past century.

Reproduced everywhere from dorm posters to key fobs and tee-shirts, and referenced in films such as 鈥淪cream 鈥� and 鈥淗ome Alone,鈥澛爄t has come to symbolize wordless horror, personal anxiety, and existential pain.

The version聽on sale is the only one remaining in private hands and observers of the Sotheby鈥檚 auction have speculated it could go for as much as $80 million.

For the uninitiated聽鈥� and there may still be some who have never seen even a picture of the original 鈥� this auction and the publicity surrounding the sale聽 may introduce them to what Los Angeles art critic Edward Goldman calls one of the masterpieces of modern painting.聽

鈥淭hat astonishing price tag will get people鈥檚 attention,鈥� he says, adding, 鈥渢his is not a bad thing. After that they may Google him. They may learn more about Munch and who knows, maybe move on to other painters.

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter which door they take to enter the temple of聽good art,鈥� he adds with a laugh, 鈥渁s long as they come in.鈥�

The rarefied聽world of collectors who can afford that sort of price tag, however, does distress him. 鈥淚 am very saddened by the prospect that this work will simply surface briefly, then disappear into the private collection of some wealthy art collector, never to be seen again,鈥� says Mr. Goldman.

A private sale would have little, if any, effect on the enduring power of the imagery, however, points out Robert Thompson, the Syracuse University popular culture expert, a reality that Munch himself might applaud, he adds.聽

鈥淚 doubt聽Munch would be rolling over in his grave at the thought that his vision is聽often experienced in the cramped space between a dorm bunk bed and the microwave,鈥� he says with a laugh, noting that聽the artist himself not only made several versions but also created lithographs to further extend its reach.

The fact that few people have聽ever experienced 鈥淭he Scream鈥� as an original artwork 鈥� the three聽state-owned iterations reside in Norwegian museums 鈥� says as much about the modern era of art appreciation as it does the power聽of the聽imagery聽Munch created, points out Professor Thomson.

鈥淭his is as much about the ideas that it evokes as it is about the texture or color or even composition,鈥� he says. The idea聽is as important as the execution 鈥� and聽can be infinitely聽reproduced without necessarily聽diminishing the power of the work to evoke a meaningful response.

Even a poor聽reproduction of Munch鈥檚 creation聽has power, points out Goldman, who says that despite the work being created in the 1890s, 鈥渋t seems to embody all the horror and prejudices of the 20th century,鈥� including two World Wars and the power of mass self-annihilation.

He notes that up until this current version surfaced for Wednesday鈥檚 auction, 鈥渋t was largely known only through a black and white photograph.鈥�

That said, the extraordinary value placed on this iteration comes from the fact that it is the only one housed in a frame painted by the artist and it is also the only version with a poem attached, explaining its origins in Munch鈥檚 experience.

He describes himself on a path overlooking the city of Oslo, with the sun setting in a blaze聽of red streaks through the sky, "shivering with anxiety" and feeling "the great scream in nature."聽

The work is being sold by a Norwegian businessman, Petter Olsen, whose father was a neighbor and patron to Munch.

Proceeds from the sale will fund a new art and聽culture center聽as well as a hotel in Hvitsten, Norway, where Olsen's father and the artist were neighbors.