Austrian painter Egon Schiele (1890 – 1918) was one of the leading figures of Austrian ExpressionismExpressionism in Austria developed largely independently, but simultaneously with the German counterpart movement. In both countries, artists shared commonalities such as a deep engagement with Symbolism as part of a legacy of Northern European humanism. While German modernist artists began exploring foreign developments, which had superseded Symbolism and Art Nouveau, Austrians remained focused on these older elements. Egon Schiele, The More. He is famous for his fluid drawing style depicting twisted and distorted bodies and raw sexuality. As early as in his teenage years, his formidable talents fully matured as a protégé of Gustav Klimt. In 1907, Klimt had become Egon’s mentor and they developed a close relationship. Rejecting conventional norms of beauty, he introduced ugliness and exaggerated emotion into art.
Schiele was extraordinarily prolific during his brief career and not only famous for his psychologically charged works, but also for his biography: He led a licentious lifestyle marked by scandal. Even from early on, Schiele’s life was controversial, with suggestions that he had an incestuous relationship with his younger sister, and in 1912 he was arrested for allegedly seducing minors.
When he was at the verge of commercial success at the age of 28, he succumbed to influenza only three days after his pregnant wife. In his short career, he created over 3,000 works on paper and around 300 paintings. During his lifetime widely considered shocking and offensive for their explicit, unapologetic eroticism, it is all the more these features, that make his pictures intriguing and mesmerizing today.