The Conditions of Ownership
“I will accept your proposal for joint ownership.”
At Si-woo’s words, Helena Vik’s expression brightened.
Ingrid also let out a breath of relief.
After a long flight, they had finally secured a result.
Now all that remained was to work out the details.
“Then, if you are agreeing to the third condition...”
“However.”
At Si-woo’s one word, the atmosphere froze.
It was always wise to hear someone out to the end.
“The third condition, acquiring a 50 percent stake in exchange for an advance payment of thirty million dollars, is fine. But I have an additional condition.”
Ingrid narrowed her eyes.
She had no idea what sort of condition he was trying to add.
Si-woo did not rush.
He lifted the water glass on the table, took a sip, and then spoke slowly.
“Please consider the scholarly value of this sketch. It is direct evidence of the moment Munch conceived The Scream. From an art-historical perspective, this is an extremely important discovery.”
“...I acknowledge that point.”
Si-woo went on in the same calm tone.
“If this work were to appear at a public auction, it would be quite a headache for both the Munch Museum and the Norwegian government.”
Ingrid fell silent for a moment, and Helena’s eyes wavered with complicated emotion.
“I also agree that Munch’s legacy should return to Norway. It carries tremendous symbolic meaning. From here on, my proposal is structured so that Norway also benefits.”
All eyes were fixed on Si-woo.
Even swallowing seemed like it would break the silence.
“The basic framework is the same as the third proposal. I would simply like to expand the cooperative relationship a little more, based on joint ownership.”
“A cooperative relationship?”
Helena asked for clarification.
“Yes. I would like the Munch Museum to lend certain pieces from its collection to Eterna Gallery on a rotating basis.”
The air grew heavy, and silence settled over the room.
Helena Vik broke it with a question.
“Which works, specifically, are you referring to?”
“First of all, the tempera version of The Scream is practically the heart of the Munch Museum, and I fully understand that it cannot be removed from Norway.”
Helena’s expression eased a fraction.
She had apparently feared he might make the absurd demand that the museum lend its masterpiece, The Scream, itself.
But the next words carefully pushed into that relief and shook it loose.
“Instead, I want the print version or the pastel version of The Scream.”
“...”
Helena Vik was left speechless.
Ignoring her reaction, Si-woo continued laying out the conditions.
“I would like to display one work each year, selected from Munch’s masterpieces such as Madonna, Vampire, and The Sick Child, with the theme changing annually.”
Under normal circumstances, he would have snorted at such outrageous terms and stood up from the table.
But his opposite number was holding the original sketch of The Scream. The balance of power was overwhelmingly in Si-woo’s favor.
No one had the courage to storm out.
“The original sketch will alternate between us on one-year loans. And along with one of Munch’s signature works, I want the rest filled out with about twenty of his drawings and prints.”
No one in the reception room could bring themselves to speak.
Helena Vik drew in a sharp breath.
Ingrid’s expression hardened like stone.
“...This is not something we can decide on our own. We’d have to consult not only the museum board, but also the Minister of Culture. Depending on the circumstances, parliamentary approval might even be required.”
“I know it’s a difficult proposal. But if you accept it, it becomes a historic exhibition that will reveal, for the first time, the process behind the birth of The Scream.”
Helena seemed to stop breathing.
Si-woo’s voice sounded sweet, like the temptation of the devil.
“The moment Munch was conceiving The Scream. The tremor of his hand as he drew the first line on the canvas. And finally, the masterpiece completed at last. Visitors will witness Munch’s journey with their own eyes, from the beginning of creation to the finished work.”
Silence fell again.
Helena unconsciously bit her lip.
As chief curator of the Munch Museum, and as a scholar who had studied Munch for more than twenty years, the desire to curate such an exhibition with her own hands surged through her.
“The entire world’s press will be watching.”
Si-woo spoke again.
“CNN, BBC, NHK, Reuters... headlines about the hidden origins of The Scream will sweep across the globe. From the Norwegian government’s point of view, it would be publicity worth more than any amount of advertising money.”
Ingrid scrubbed a hand over her face.
“Good heavens...”
Helena and Ingrid exchanged a look.
This was more than enough to be worth considering.
To bring back the early sketch of The Scream, some pain was inevitable.
“...Very well.”
Ingrid nodded as if making a final decision.
“Purchase fifty percent joint ownership for thirty million dollars, with one year’s loan of a Munch masterpiece each. A rotating loan of prints and drawings as well. I will report these conditions to my country and seek approval.”
A small smile touched Si-woo’s lips.
“I’ll wait.”
If this deal went through, Eterna Gallery would hold a stake in the work.
It would secure both profit and ownership.
Exchange with the Munch Museum would lift Eterna Gallery’s status by another tier.
* * *
On Nutflix’s YouTube channel, videos were uploaded at regular intervals.
It was Nutflix’s strategy for generating buzz.
And it worked. Every time a new episode went up, it drew enormous numbers of views.
Singing Bird: Father Joseph
Views: 14.6 million, 2 days ago
A series of photographs and memories of a Jewish man flickered past.
- Don’t lose this. This is our promise. If Father is late, Anna, come to New York. Wind this key at the place where you can see the Empire State Building. Then Father will hear the sound of the bird singing and surely find you.
- Anna, this isn’t a goodbye forever. We’re only apart for a little while!
A man leaving behind his daughter and wife, boarding a ship.
Time passed after he arrived in New York.
The man lingered before the Empire State Building, come rain or snow.
A single letter was shown in close-up.
- To my beloved Anna. You did not come today either. But that is all right. Father can wait as long as it takes. Whenever you come, I will be here. At the place we promised each other, whenever that may be.
- If you are reading this letter, then know that your father has never forgotten you, not for a single day. Since the day I sent you away from Vienna Station, my heart has always stayed beside you.”
People who watched the video were curious.
The contents of the letter were anything but ordinary.
As all sorts of theories about the video spread like a challenge, different bits of information began to circulate.
- Joseph is Anna’s father, right? Damn. I’m tearing up just from the letter.
- So they never end up together? That sounds way too sad.
- This is a real story? Then when is the actual thing coming out?
Riding the momentum, Nutflix kept releasing new videos in quick succession.
Singing Bird: Who Is Anna?
Views: 13.8 million, 1 day ago
It was a short video.
Along with photos from Anna’s childhood, she appeared with a ribbon in her hair, smiling brightly.
With that smile, a caption appeared.
D-7, worldwide simultaneous release
- One week left?????? I was seriously about to lose my mind waiting for this T_T
- Wait, what? They’re just announcing it like this?
- I’m buying popcorn and waiting in front of the TV a week from now lol
- What time is the global release in Korea?
- They say 5 p.m. I’m watching it the moment I get off work.
- Ugh, I have to work overtime T_T
* * *
[Reddit: SingingBirdBox]
[MEGATHREAD] Summary of everything revealed so far
- Joseph Weiss: Anna’s father. A Jewish man from Vienna, Austria. Separated from his family after Nazi Germany annexed Austria in 1938. Presumed to have fled to New York, USA.
- Anna Weiss: Joseph’s daughter. She appears to have escaped by a different route with her mother. Later, she seems to have gone to Shanghai and then to Hong Kong. She is now living in the United Kingdom.
- Singing Bird box: Presumably the Singing Bird box Joseph left for Anna, made by Freres Rochas. Its value is at least in the tens or hundreds of billions of won. It had been missing for more than 80 years, but the trailer suggests it was found in Hong Kong by Korean appraiser Kim Si-woo.
- Kim Si-woo: A Korean art appraiser. He found the bird box when he discovered it inside a toppled street stall while chasing a pickpocket in Hong Kong. Before that, he had already uncovered several major relics and sold porcelain worth about 80 billion won at a Hong Kong auction.
By now, people had learned enough to grasp the basics.
That did not mean their curiosity had gone away.
On Twitter, it hit number one in the real-time trends.
#SingingBird
#WhoIsAnna
#SingingBird
#ReleasingInOneWeek
The hashtags flooded the world.
News outlets in every country rushed out articles of their own.
“Nutflix’s Singing Bird, D-7 worldwide simultaneous release...” - Reuters
“A Jewish family tragedy that happened more than eighty years ago... documentary Singing Bird to be released” - BBC
“Korean appraiser Kim Si-woo brings old history back to life” - The New York Times
“Global ‘Find Anna’ fever grows ahead of Singing Bird release” - CNN
* * *
A man with a haggard face.
He looked as if he might collapse at any moment.
Yang Dong-seok stared blankly at Si-woo while drinking an iced Americano.
“Please drink slowly.”
“Heh. We were in chaos editing this thing, barely sleeping properly. I’ve lost all track of time.”
Yang Dong-seok poured out his complaints.
“But I have a question.”
Si-woo asked.
“This is a story from more than eighty years ago. There couldn’t have been much video material. How did you make a documentary out of it?”
In response to Si-woo’s question, Yang Dong-seok answered, “That was the hardest part. We used three major methods.”
Yang Dong-seok held up one finger.
“First, archival research. We dug through every news item, newspaper photo, and immigration record from Vienna and New York in the 1930s and 1940s. The U.S. National Archives, the Austrian National Library, the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum, all of it. We combed through archives around the world. Nutflix headquarters threw everything it had into the project.”
Yang Dong-seok raised a second finger.
“Second, reenactment. For parts where there were no records, we filmed with actors. But this wasn’t just reenactment; we meticulously verified everything against period photographs and documents.”
He showed Si-woo the screen of a laptop.
The interior of an apartment in Vienna.
Furniture and props from the 1930s.
“We built the set in an Austrian film studio. The furniture, wallpaper, even the dishes were all recreated from the reference materials of the time. The role of Joseph was played by an Austrian actor.”
Looking at the photos, Si-woo was startled.
He had not expected the production to be mounted on such a large scale.
Yang Dong-seok held up a third finger.
“Third, AI restoration.”
His eyes gleamed.
“This was the real breakthrough. We restored damaged black-and-white photographs with the latest AI technology and colorized them. We even brought Joseph’s youthful photos back to life like this.”
On the screen, a man’s photograph appeared.
It was clear that this was Joseph.
At first, it was a faded black-and-white image.
Then it slowly bloomed into color.
Brown hair. Green eyes. A gentle smile.
“Wow...”
A gasp slipped out.
The photograph from eighty years ago had come vividly to life, as if it had been taken yesterday.
“And the letters.”
Yang Dong-seok said, “There were dozens of letters Joseph left behind. They were kept by a Jewish historical organization in New York, and they gave us the whole set. We built the story out from what was written there.”
Old letters appeared on the screen.
Handwriting densely packed in German.
Yang Dong-seok smiled with confidence.
“You can look forward to it.”
* * *
D-Day.
190 countries around the world.
Subtitles in 31 languages.
A huge banner appeared on Nutflix’s main screen.
A poster that seemed to let one hear a bird singing. Beneath it, a single line of text.
Breaking the long silence, the bird sings again.
At the moment of release.
Nutflix’s servers were overwhelmed.
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