Edvard Munch at Sotheby’s, 2006

Although dead since 62 years ago, Edvard Munch seems to be still the most “active” Norwegian artist. One year and half ago, art world was shocked with the theft of the famous “The Scream” from the Munch Museum in Oslo , beginning a hard debate about the security of the Norwegian museums. Now, a group of paintings by Munch can also left Norway , but now we are not talking about a theft. although the Norwegian public opinion doesn’t think so.

The facts: Sotheby’s London is going to sell at auction next February 7 th 2006 an impressive group of a dozen paintings by the Norwegian painter (most notably “Summer day”, an 1904-08 oil on canvas, measuring 36- 77 inches , very impressive and highlighted with a couple of skull-like figures in close-up; an interesting “Self portrait against two coloured background”; and a very beautiful 1919 seascape entitled “The Wave”) from the Olsen collection, a well known Norwegian family, who bought more than twenty works by Munch in 1938 form the Nazis. The division of the collection between two brothers seems to have also supposed the division of the family, given that the decision of one of them about selling his part has not be well received neither by his brother, neither by the Norwegian people.

In the same sale, Sotheby’s is going to auctin an important and very painterly Tahitian landscape by Paul Gauguin, entitled ” Deux femmes or La Chevelure fleurie”, painted in 1902, one year before the artist’s death.