Egon Schiele

Egon Schiele (1890 – 1918) was an Austrian painter. A protégé of Gustav Klimt, Schiele was a major figurative painter of the early 20th century. His work is noted for its intensity and its raw sexuality, and the many self-portraits the artist produced, including nude self-portraits. The twisted body shapes and the expressive line that characterize Schiele's paintings and drawings mark the artist as an early exponent of Expressionism. By 1910 Schiele had reshaped the artistic influences of Gustav Klimt and the Vienna Secessions – Austria’s counterpart to Art Nouveau – and forged his own personal style. The disturbing, haunting images depicted by Schiele more than those of any other Expressionist, manifest directly this sensitive artist’s innermost feelings of sexuality, angst and self-absorption. In the autumn of 1918, the Spanish flu pandemic that claimed more than 20,000,000 lives in Europe reached Vienna. His wife, who was six months pregnant, succumbed to the disease. Schiele died only three days after his wife. He was 28 years old. During the three days between their deaths, Schiele drew sketches of her. Serge Sabarsky is one of the principal experts of Schiele’s work, and is recognized internationally as a leading authority on German and Austrian Expressionism.151 Illustrations; 20 in color.

Frank Whitford was born in 1941 and educated at Wadham College, Oxford, the Courtauld Institute, London and the Freie Universitat, West Berlin. After a career as a journalist and a cartoonist, he taught at University College London, and then in Cambridge, where he is still attached to Wolfson College. Well known as a broadcaster and lecturer, he was for many years Tutor in Cultural History at the Royal College of Art, London. His other books include Klimt and Bauhaus (also in the World of Art Series); Oskar Kokoschka, A Life; Expressionist Paintings and the prize-winning Japanese Prints and Western Painters.