Pål Enger (26 March 1967 – 29 June 2024) was a Norwegian art thief who was best known for

stealing Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

the paintings ''

The Scream ''The Scream'' is an art composition created by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch in 1893. The Norwegian name of the piece is ('Screaming, Scream'), and the German title under which it was first exhibited is ' ('The Scream of Nature'). The agonize ...

'' and '' Love and Pain'' by

Edvard Munch Edvard Munch ( ; ; 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 inher ...

. In his early life, he played football for

Vålerenga Fotball Vålerenga Fotball () is a Norwegian professional association football, football club from Oslo, and a part of the multi-sport club Vålerengens IF. The club currently competes in the Eliteserien after being promoted from the Norwegian First ...

Early life and football

Growing up, Enger was part of the core of the criminal led by the money collector , which led to a sentence of one year for profiteering as a 16-year-old. When he was 19, he served his first sentence at Ullersmo prison. In his teenage years, Enger was a promising footballer for

. When he was 19, he played three matches as a substitute for Vålerenga's first team: twice in the

Norwegian first division The Norwegian First Division, also called 1. divisjon () and OBOS-ligaen (due to sponsoring ties with :no:OBOS, OBOS), is the second-highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Each year, the top finishing teams in the 1. divisjon ...

, and once in the

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

. After serving three years in prison for the theft of ''Love and Pain'', Enger tried to take up football again in 1991, playing for

Mercantile Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cred ...

in the third tier of Norwegian football.

Art thefts

On 23 February 1988, Enger climbed into a window at the

Munch Museum Munch Museum (), marketed as Munch (stylised in all caps) since 2020, is an art museum in Bjørvika, Oslo, Norway dedicated to the life and works of the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch. The museum was originally located at Tøyen, which was opene ...

in Oslo and stole the painting '' Love and Pain'' by

. In the same year, he was behind the biggest theft of its kind when he broke into the jeweller's shop Tostrup on Karl Johans gate and stole goods worth NOK 4.8 million. On 12 February 1994, he stole ''

'' by Edvard Munch from the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

. He was also convicted of a number of other profiteering, traffic and drug offences, after a number of traffic offences. In December 2015, Enger was charged with stealing a total of 17 paintings from the Fineart gallery at

Aker brygge Aker Brygge is a neighbourhood in central Oslo, Norway. Since the 1980s and 1990s, it has been a popular area for shopping, dining, and entertainment, as well as a high-end residential area. It was previously an industrial area. Location Aker B ...

in Oslo. Twelve of the pictures were made by Hariton Pushwagner, the other artworks are made by

Vebjørn Sand Vebjørn Sand (born March 11, 1966) is a Norwegian painter and artist. He is known for his paintings as well as his public arts projects, such as the Vebjørn Sand Da Vinci Project, Da Vinci Project, and the Kepler–Poinsot polyhedron, Kepler St ...

and Bjarne Melgaard. According to

Dagbladet () is one of Norway's largest newspapers and is published in the Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. It has 1,400,000 daily readers on mobile, web and paper. Traditionally it was considered the main liberal newspaper of Norway, with a ...

, a wallet with Enger's ID was found in the gallery. Enger pleaded partially guilty and admitted stealing five Pushwagner pictures. Enger started painting during a prison stay in 2007, first animals and vehicles, and then abstract motifs. In March 2011, he opened his own art exhibition with a number of abstract works. In a 2012 interview, Enger claimed that the painting ''The Scream'' had become world-famous because of him. Enger died on 29 June 2024, at the age of 57.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Enger, Pal 1967 births 2024 deaths People from Oslo Art thieves Norwegian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Vålerenga Fotball players 20th-century Norwegian sportsmen