Artist: Edvard Munch (Norwegian, 1863-1944)
Title: "Omegas Død (Omega's Death)"
Portfolio: Alfa og Omega (Alpha and Omega)
*Signed by Munch in pencil lower right
Year: 1908-1909
Medium: Original Lithograph on Japan paper
Limited edition: approx. 20 on Japan paper, (from a total edition of approx. 80-90)
Printer: Dansk Reproduktionsanstalt, Copenhagen, Denmark
Publisher: the artist Munch himself, Copenhagen, Denmark
Reference: "Edvard Munch: The Complete Graphic Works" - Woll No. 356, page 254-255; "Edvard Munch: Das Graphische Werk 1906-1926" - Schiefler No. 326; Munch-Museet Grafikk No. 321
Framing: Recently beautifully framed in a modern gold moulding with 100% cotton rag matting and Museum glass
Framed size: 24.13" x 32.13"
Sheet size: 15.07" x 22.88"
Image size: 12.13" x 21.13"
Condition: A strong impression in excellent condition
Very rare
Notes:
Provenance: private collection - Cincinnati, OH; private collection - Mr. O. Wennerberg, Denmark; acquired directly from the artist. Comes from Munch's 1908-1909 "Alfa og Omega (Alpha and Omega)" portfolio of 22 lithographs consisting of eighteen images, two vignettes, a title page, and a table of contents. Printed in one color from one stone plate: black. Pencil and ink inscribed in Danish lower left on verso: "gave til mig fra Edv Munch - O Wennerberg" which translates to "gift to me from (Edvard) Munch - O Wennerberg".
"Edvard Munch's 'Alpha and Omega' folder is a collection of graphics that illustrate a personal and bizarre version of a creation story. The story is about the first two people on a desert island - Alpha and Omega. They live in harmony until a large cloud casts a shadow over the island - Alfa discovers Omega lying with a huge snake on top of her, staring into its eyes. Alpha kills the snake in anger and jealousy, but this does not stop Omega. She initiates erotic relationships with all the island's animals, until she gets bored and flees on the back of a fallow deer. Alfa thinks he is left alone - but one day Omega's children come to him. A new family has grown up on the island, and they call him their father. There are little pigs, snakes, monkeys, predators and other human bastards. Alpha despairs: 'He ran along the Sea; The sky and the sea were stained with blood; he heard screams in the air and held his ears; The earth, the sky, and the sea trembled, and he felt great anxiety.' When Omega returns one day, Alfa kills her. As he sits and watches her body, he is attacked from behind by all her children and the island's animals that tear him to death." - Munch Museet, (based on an article by Sivert Thue)
Biography:
Edvard Munch (Norwegian: 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His 1893 work The Scream has become one of Western art's most acclaimed images. His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dread of inheriting a mental condition that ran in the family. Studying at the Royal School of Art and Design in Kristiania (today's Oslo), Munch began to live a bohemian life under the influence of the nihilist Hans Jæger, who urged him to paint his own emotional and psychological state ('soul painting'); from this emerged his distinctive style. Travel brought new influences and outlets. In Paris, he learned much from Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, especially their use of color. In Berlin, he met the Swedish dramatist August Strindberg, whom he painted, as he embarked on a major series of paintings he would later call "The Frieze of Life", depicting a series of deeply-felt themes such as love, anxiety, jealousy and betrayal, steeped in atmosphere. "The Scream" was conceived in Kristiania. According to Munch, he was out walking at sunset, when he 'heard the enormous, infinite scream of nature'. The painting's agonized face is widely identified with the angst of the modern person. Between 1893 and 1910, he made two painted versions and two in pastels, as well as a number of prints. One of the pastels would eventually command the fourth highest nominal price paid for a painting at auction. As his fame and wealth grew, his emotional state remained insecure. He briefly considered marriage, but could not commit himself. A mental breakdown in 1908 forced him to give up heavy drinking, and he was cheered by his increasing acceptance by the people of Kristiania and exposure in the city's museums. His later years were spent working in peace and privacy. Although his works were banned in Nazi-occupied Europe, most of them survived World War II, securing him a legacy.