Ally says:
Egon Schiele: Portraits opens at the Neue Gallery in Manhattan today. As a huge fan of his work, I'm beyond excited to see this exhibit.
In 2013 I went to Austria and visited the Leopold Museum which has an impressive collection of his work.
Schiele was a protege of Gustav Klimt, this guy:
who famously painted this;
which is also in Austria, which I also saw and which also goes down as one of the most amazing art experiences of my life, right up there with seeing The David, the Sistine Chapel and Olive Trees by Van Gogh. The painting is huge, takes up an entire wall and is hung against stark black really off-setting the gold. Jaw-droppingly beautiful.
But back to Schiele....
Schiele's short life (he succumbed to the Spanish Flu at the age of 28) was none the less incredibly productive and like all good artists, mired in scandal. While living in Bohemia he was arrested for soliciting a girl under the age of consent and, when they arrived at his home, the police found and confiscated what were considered pornographic work.
Pretty racy for 1912. While imprisoned for 24 days he created an impressive 12 paintings.
In 1914, he wished to marry Edith, a wealthy socialite, mistakenly assuming that his long time girlfriend, muse, and model, Wally would be fine with that. She left him and he created
Death and the Maiden:
By 1917 he was a most prolific artist, at the height of his career and had 50 works accepted into the Secession's 49th Exhibition.
By 1918, he was dead. His final works were sketches of his wife Edith, who died of the Spanish Flu just three days before him.
The Neue Gallery will have on showcase 125 paintings, drawings and sculptures.
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