Oil Pastel

Most artists don’t use oil pastel, because of its many weaknesses. It was such a strong belief held by me that I threw away all the drawings I did. But one day I found that one of the most iconic images in the world of art "The Scream" (1893), by the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch was done using tempera, oil, and pastel on cardboard, he sometimes even used crayon. The cardboard was unprimed, and Munch applied the paint quickly to create an energetic, expressive effect. This painting sold for nearly 120 million dollars in 2012.

The agonized face in the painting is said to depict "The Anxiety of the Human Condition", something that seems to have been always present in Munch's life. With a childhood of illness and bereavement, Munch always dreaded getting a mental condition that many of his relatives had. No wonder he drew such haunting paintings. He later described his inspiration for the painting as follows:

"I was walking along the road 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". I liked this drawing so much that I decided to draw it without copying it. Halfway into the painting, it went terribly wrong but I managed to salvage it to an extent. The result is given below together with the original drawing.