What visual techniques create a feeling of panic in The Scream?

In his iconic painting The Scream, Norwegian artist Edvard Munch employs several visual techniques to evoke a sense of panic and existential dread:

• Undulating Lines: Munch uses swirling, wave-like lines that press in on the central figure, functioning like psychological shock waves that represent a scream passing through nature.12
• Contrasting Geometry: The swelling, distorted contours of the environment visually clash with the rigid, straight lines of the path. This contrast highlights the isolation of the central figure, whose two companions remain unaffected and continue walking away, suggesting the trauma is internal rather than external.12
• Abstracted Form: The central figure is reduced to a swaying, corpselike shape with features composed of gaping ovals, emphasizing a state of raw, primal terror.32
• Expressive Color: Munch utilized intense, blood-red hues for the sky to mirror his own hallucinatory experience, noting that the colors themselves seemed to shriek.12

These techniques collectively transform the scene into a powerful representation of modern spiritual anguish and anxiety.34