Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” has long been phenomena to large to be confined to the walls of a museum. The iconic work is a pop culture meme, and one unlike any other visual art meme in that it is instantly recognizable and universal, and you can understand why as the timeless expression represents the absurdity and anxiety of the modern world.
Now, with one version of Munch’s renowned series on display at MoMA, New Yorkers and tourists are mimicking the bald figure’s extreme expression much the way tourists to Oslo have long been doing — though some aren’t very successful at it. Some people may think it’s tacky, I think it’s a scream.
Edvard Munch: The Scream is on view at the Museum of Modern Art (11 West 53rd Street, Midtown, Manhattan) through April 29, 2013.
