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| Self-Portrait with Physalis (1912) |
Egon Leo Adolf Ludwig Schiele was born on 12th of June 1890 in Tulln, Austria. He was the son of a station master and his mother was of Czech origin. chiele had three sisters, Elvira, Melanie and Gertrude. Before the birth of Schiele, his mother had suffered the stillbirths of three sons. Elvira died as a child of congenital syphilis. His father suffered from syphilis and it progressed. When Egon was 11 he left home to study secondary school. Egon was shy and reserved, he did poorly at school except in athletics and drawing. When Schiele was 14 years old his father died from syphilis. Schiele's elder sister, Melanie, became the family's sole breadwinner when she was hired as a ticket clerk at the local railway station. Egon and his younger sister Gertrude (Gerti) were then raised by their uncle. Egon's mother financed Egon's art studies. This support was cut off due to his sister Melanie's objecting to the expense of it, and it caused a rift in the family. In 1906 Egon applied to the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Arts and Crafts) in Vienna. He was pursuaded by several faculty members to attend the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (Akademie der Bildenden Künste) instead. His main teacher at this school, Christian Griepenkerl, made him so dissatisfied that he left this school after 3 years. At this time painter Gustav Klimt mentored younger artists including Egon.
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| Hafen von Triest (1907) |
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| Two Girls Lying Entwined (1915) |
Schiele's earliest works between 1907 and 1909 contain strong similarities with those of Klimt and Art Nouveau. When Egon left school in 1909 he formed Neukunstgruppe ("New Art Group") together with other dissatisfied students fromt the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna . Klimt invited Egon to exhibit some of his work at the 1909 Vienna Kunstschau where he also saw the works of Edvard Munch, Jan Toorop, and Vincent van Gogh to be inspired with.
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| Mutter und Kind II (1912) |
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| Field of Flowers (1910) |
He started to paint the human being as well as landscapes and still lifes. With his art group he exhibited his works in various exhibitions in Germany and Hungary. In 1911 Egon met the seventeen-year-old Wally Neuzil who lived with him in Vienna and served as a model for some of his most famous paintings.
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| Portrait of Wally Neuzil (1912) |
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| Sitzende Frau mit hochgezogenem Knie (1917) / Model Edith |
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| Death And The Maiden (1915) |
The couple moved to Neulengbach near Vienna. His way of life created much enemies in the town. In April 1912 he was arrested under suspicion of kidnapping and seducing a girl of 13. During the arrestment they confiscated hundreds of drawings which were considered pornographic. When the case was brought before a judge charges were dropped. In 1913 the Galerie Hans Goltz in Munich displayed Egon's first solo show. A solo exhibition of his work took place in Paris in 1914. He then wanted to marry Edith Harms who was also living in Vienna and also continue his relationship with Wally. After hearing this Wally left him immediately. This abandonment led him to paint "Death and the Maiden". Egon and Edith were married on 17 June 1915. Just 3 days after the wedding he had to report for active service in the army where he was initially stationed in Prague. His military work consisted of guarding and escorting Russian prisoners. During the war Schiele's paintings became larger and more detailed. His work at this time consisted of linear drawings of scenery and military officers. He was also painting themes of motherhood and family. Despite his military service Schiele was still exhibiting in Berlin and also had successful shows in Zürich, Prague, and Dresden. Schiele was invited to participate in the 49th Vienna Secession exhibition held in 1918. He also designed a poster for the exhibition. The composition was reminiscent of the Last Supper with a portrait of himself in the place of Jesus.
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| Poster for the 49th Vienna Secession (1918) |
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| Krumau (1916) |
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| The Vision of St. Hubert (1916) |
In the autumn of 1918 the Spanish flu pandemic reached Vienna and Edit died on the 28th of October. Egon died three days after his wife. He was then 28 years old. At these last days he draw a few sketches of Edith.
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| Portrait of Friederike Maria Beer-Monti (1914) |
