Edvard Munch and "The Scream" in the National Museum

The National Museum in Oslo holds one of the world’s most important collections of paintings by Edvard Munch, including such iconic works as "The Scream". These works are available for the public in The National Museum.

Kunstner: Munch Edvard, Self-Portrait with Cigarette

Text by the Editorial Staff

In the collection you will find the earliest versions of The Scream, as well as MadonnaThe Girls on the PierThe Dance of Life, and The Sick Child – artistic statements that are captivating in their ruthless honesty and profound humanism.  

The Scream and the other works by Edvard Munch are on display and presented in the Edvard Munch room in The National Museum.

Munch, Edvard, The Scream
Edvard Munch, "The Scream", 1893.
Photo: Nasjonalmuseet / Børre Høstland

The Scream

Painted in 1893, Munch’s iconic Scream was donated to the National Gallery in 1910. In terms of its fame, this painting now rivals works such as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa (1503) and Van Gogh’s Sunflowers (1888). Few artworks have inspired filmmakers, cartoonists and other artists to the extent that The Scream has done. The painting is a radical and timeless expression of human fear.

Maleri av Madonna
Edvard Munch, "Madonna", 1894–1895.
Photo: Nasjonalmuseet / Børre Høstland

Also one of the most important and best known motifs of Edvard Munch’s oeuvre, Madonna was at the centre of his “Frieze of Life” series.

Jobber ... Jobber ...

Conservator at the National Museum, Thierry Ford, shows you some secrets of the famous Scream (in English with Norwegian subtitles).

Edvard Munch in the National Museum

In the Munch room in the National Museum, 18 of Munch's most important works are on view. 

Here are The Sick Child, The Scream, The Dance of Life, Ashes, Death in the Sick-room, and more on display.

There are also Munch paintings in other rooms in the museum, placing him in a wider context. 

The Munch room
Photo: Nasjonalmuseet