For four years the great creativity of the Norwegian Edvard Munch (Edvard Munch) enjoys increasing attention the press. In August 2004, the world облетела news that the most famous paintings Precursor expressionism, «cry» and «Madonna», were stolen from the Munch Museum in Oslo. Motives of attackers were not clear: proposals for the repurchase of them no, and sell the works they are unlikely to become - too much of these things are known. Criminals have been pictures awry (the wreckage of one frame found in the grass near the museum), and consequently concluded that the arts are not respected.

Time passed, and all the pictures are. Come on, even rumors that the attackers because of a fear of international resonance, simply a matter of them burned. But in 2006, to general rejoicing, the police still found masterpieces - albeit damaged, but alive. U «Creek» was podloman angle (work done on cardboard), and the «Madonna» tore the canvas. Both paintings were found numerous stains and scratches. But «wounds» were not fatal. In 2008, restoration was completed, and again on May 23, the picture can be seen in the Munch Museum. Moreover, if «treatment» «Creek» was installed over the exact date of writing, painting .

Thanks to the media noise rage every four years, prices for Munch works increased significantly. In May 2008, his painting «Girls on the Bridge» (1902) was sold at Sotheby's auction for 30.8 million dollars. This result is three times higher than the previous record price for the artist's works and, incidentally, almost four times - his own auction price of paintings (in 1996 painting «Girls on the Bridge» was sold for 7.7 million dollars). According to Knut Forsberg (Knut Forsberg), director of the Norwegian Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner, the pace of price growth has accelerated since 2005. Since 2000, his auction house each year conducts an auction on Munku, which sold from 20 to 40 works. Forsberg said that the success of works by Norwegian artist at auction relates primarily to the increased attention to his work because of the theft. But Sotheby's representative in Oslo Astrap Inger (Inger Astrup) does not agree with him. She believes that the main factors of rising prices - large exhibition of works by Munch and the sale of his paintings from the collection of Fred Olsen, Norwegian millionaire (Fred Olsen), held in February 2006.

Material prepared Yulia Maksimova

Sources: www.directorinfo.ru , www.theartnewspaper.com , artinvestment.ru