Picture "Madonna" Munch. Description

Edward Munch (1863-1944) formulated his credo as a desire to write living people, breathing, suffering, loving - "people taking off their hats before entering the church." In the expression of strong human emotions, he lacked the means of classical realism, he discovered new ways in art, in many ways ahead of his time. He was looking for new artistic means of painting, he reinterpreted classical themes in a new way. A vivid example of this search was the painting "Madonna". Munch was inspired by the theme, born a thousand years ago, but the result was a work that is relevant for any time.

Precursor of Expressionism

In his development as a painter Munch passed periods of fascination with a variety of approaches to reflecting the world around him. He has works created in a classical, realistic manner. He painted landscapes in the Impressionist style, experienced the powerful influence of the French Symbolists. As a result, the master has formed his own creative method, which does not allow him to refer to a particular current. The closest to the work of the great Norwegian is the painting of Gauguin and, especially, Van Gogh. But they are really united only by the strength of the energy radiated by their works - the peculiarity of the picturesque manner and the features of the artistic analysis of the world are too obvious.

In this sense, the painting "Madonna" Munch contains all the signs of the originality of his painting. These include unprecedented frankness in the unexpected interpretation of the classic story, which was called scandalous, laconic composition and unique technique of constructing an image. Smooth, viscous lines of drawing and a viscous background in which the details are hidden inessential for the embodiment of the general plan - in this manner all the most significant things of the master are created, in which it is customary to see signs of a new art of the 20th century.

Is this Madonna?

The controversy about whether or not the painting "Madonna" Munch is an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, flared up immediately after writing the first version of the canvas in 1893. The only indication of the divine origin of the depicted woman is the halo above her head, and the unusual red color. It is known that at first the painting was called the artist Kvinne som elsker - literally - the woman makes love. The name that later appeared, referring to the classical creations that have been known since the early Middle Ages, to the great works of the masters of the Renaissance, adds a new depth to the original design.

One of the reasons for the choice of the master of such a plot and how the painting "Madonna" Munch meets the religious view of the artist, the researchers of his work explain the tragic events of his youth. Born into a family where his father, Christian Munch, a military doctor, was characterized by a painful religiousness, Edward initially takes deep in his Christian postulates. But after the death of his beloved elder sister Sophia, after he watched the praying moaning of his father, who could not help the dying, he was finally disillusioned with traditional religion. And Madonna in his painting became only a symbol, and the theme of the canvas was life and love - female and male.

"Frieze of life"

In 1903, in one of the halls of the Berlin Secession - exhibitions of artists who denied traditional, academic art - Munch first exhibited the first works from the series of paintings, which, in his opinion, was to cover the main periods of life, the main aspects of human existence. He called it "The Frieze of Life" and continued to work on it almost all his life.

For the artist, the order of placing the canvases was important, which were hung out according to several sections. "Madonna" - a picture of Munch - was drawn by him for "Freese" and related to the section "The Birth of Love." In addition, there were others: "The heyday and decline of love", "The fear of life" (to which the famous "Scream" (1893)) - and "Death."

The exact composition of the sections has not been preserved and is being restored by the memoirs of contemporaries, but the fact that the theme of the relationship between man and woman was one of the main components of the "Frieze" is also known from the master's texts.

The moment of love

In total five variants of a picture - lithographic and executed by oil paints were created. Each of them is not just a blind repetition, but a gradual development of the topic, the addition of a plan with new nuances and details. In one of the graphical variants, the artist frames the picture with a symbolic representation of the life-giving fluid, placing in the end a small human fetus. The fact that the "Madonna" - a picture of Munch, depicting a woman at the moment of love, becomes clear even more clearly.

But the depth and volume of really great paintings, does not allow too simple interpretations. A masterpiece, referring to the highest level - "Madonna", a picture of Munch. It depicts a woman - terrestrial and alive - with her round and hot lines depicting her body, so clear is the passion in the eyes and features of her face, the pose seems natural, if we assume that before us is a lying, not standing model. Why does the picture emit such dramatic effect, why does the embryo of the future fruit of love look like a dead man? To explain this by a common gloomy premise coming from the artist's work, which had a broken mentality, is too light-weight - the higher powers are driving the great master's hand.

The Thinker and the Prophet

In his creations, now see the omens of the global world upheavals of the 20th century. In the last decades of his life, he knew success and recognition, and died in 1944 in his native Norway, in a country captured by fascists - connoisseurs of another art - preaching clear and understandable truths, in a language accessible to the very one-celled creature.

His paintings set price records at auctions, and with them incredible stories occur: "Madonna" - a picture of Edward Munch, in 2004, was stolen from the museum in Oslo by two armed robbers, along with one of the other masterpiece of the master - "Scream." For a whole year their whereabouts were unknown, although the robbers were found and convicted. There was information about their final loss. But the canvases returned to the museum, although somewhat damaged.

The main advantage of works like the "Madonna" is that they give an opportunity to find their answers to the most important questions of being, but only to those who ask such questions and those who seek such answers.