Masterpiece from the unheard decibels of a scream of a lunatic!

During my visit to the Louvre, I had arrived just at opening time. In spite of all the fantastic artwork and relics around, people were not interested. They were all zooming in to view the highlight of the revered museum- The Mona Lisa! Only to be disappointed be its miniature size dwarfed by all the surrounding mammoth work of art.
Ask anyone which is the second most painting in the world, chances are that they would probably only about Mona Lisa, Da Vinci and the mystery surrounding the identity, the masala and the uncertainty of the gender of the subject. The second, No!
Just to prove my point, I asked my two sons. Just like throwing a pie on my face, they matter-of-factly told me even without looking at me, The Scream. On probing, I found that they found it out from watching 'Sponge Bob Square Pants'. Yeah, the show which is accused of shortening attention span! They are more knowledgeable than I thought they were.
Just like all works of art, 'The Scream' has its own story.

I first saw it in primary school (painted by a student) decorating the hall without me knowing what it was. And it appeared again in secondary school as somebody's linograph printing in art and craft class. When the posters of 'Home Alone'was staring all over the world, little did I know that it was mirrored after the famous painting.
'The Scream' was painted by Edvard Munch, a Norwegian painter in 1893 in a street in Oslo.
This street housed a mental asylum in a country with the highest rate of suicide in the world. Walking along the street, one could hear screams of its inmate. Hence, the painting and the scream.
In 'Home Alone', the posture of the boy is meant to accentuate the scream of a boy forgotten by his family and is left to to fend for himself an otherwise innate piece of paper!

“I was walking along a path with two friends – the sun was setting – suddenly the sky turned blood red – I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence – there was blood and tongues of fire above the blue-black fjord and the city – my friends walked on, and I stood there trembling with anxiety – and I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature.” Edvard Munch, 1893

Comments

Gory historic details or gore fest?

Razakar: The Silent Genocide Of Hyderabad (Telegu, 2024) Director: Yata Satyanarayana In her last major speech before her disposition, Sheikh Hasina accused those who opposed her rule in Bangladesh of being Razakars. The opposition took offence to this term and soon widespread mob throughout the land. Of course, it is not that that single incident brought down an elected government but a culmination of joblessness and unjust reservations for a select population group. In the Bengali psyche, Razakar is a pejorative term meaning traitor or Judas. It was first used during the 1971 Pakistan Civil War. The paramilitary group who were against the then-East Pakistani leader, Majibur Rehman, were pro-West Pakistan. After establishing independence in Bangladesh, Razakars were disbanded, and many ran off to Pakistan. Around the time of Indian independence, turmoil brewed in the princely state of Hyderabad, which had been a province deputed by the Mughals from 1794. The rule of N...

The products of a romantic star of the yesteryear!

Now you see all the children of Gemini Ganesan (of four wives, at least) posing gleefully for the camera after coming from different corners of the world to see the ailing father on his deathbed. They seem to found peace with the contributor of their half of their 46 chromosomes. Sure, growing up must have been hell seeing their respective mothers shedding tears, indulgence in unhealthy activities with one of them falling prey to the curse of the black dog, hating the sight of each step sibling, their respective heartaches all because of the evil done by one man who could not put his raging testesterones under check! Perhaps,the flashing lights and his dizzying heights that his career took clouded his judgement. After all, he was only human... Gems of Gemini Ganesan L-R: Dr Revathi Swaminathan, Narayani Ganesan, Dr Kamala Selvaraj, Rekha, Vijaya Chamundeswari and Dr Jaya Shreedhar. ( Abs: Radha Usman Syed, Sathish Kumaar Ganesan) Seeing six of Ge...

Chicken's Invite? (Ajak-ajak ayam)

In the Malay lingo, the phrase 'ajak-ajak ayam' refers to an insincere invitation. Of course, many of us invite for courtesy's sake, but then the invitee may think that the invitation is for real! How does anyone know? Inviters and invitees must be smart enough to take the cue that one party may have gatecrashed with ulterior motives, or the other may not want him to join in the first place! Easily twenty years ago, my family was invited to a toddler's birthday party. As my children were toddlers, too, we were requested to come early so that my kids could run around and play in their big compound. And that the host said she would arrange a series of games for them to enjoy. So there we were in the early evening at a house that resembled very little of one immersed in joy and celebration. Instead, we were greeted by a house devoid of activities and no guests. The host was still out shopping her last-minute list, and her helper was knee-deep in her preparations to ...

RIFLE RANGE BOY

Search This Blog