Egon Schiele

Paul Wengraf, Vienna & London
Arcade Gallery, London
Viktor Fogarassy, Graz
Private Collection
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Darmstadt, Mathildenhöhe, 2. Internationale der Zeichnung, 1967, no. 93, illustrated in the catalogue
London, Royal Academy of Arts, Vienna Secession: Art Nouveau to 1970, 1971, no. 258 (titled Woman)
Bregenz, Künstlerhaus Palais Thurn und Taxis, Jugendstil - Wiener Secession, 1971, no. 166

Christian M. Nebehay, Egon Schiele: Leben, Briefe, Gedichte, Salzburg & Vienna, 1979, illustrated fig. 142
Jane Kallir, Egon Schiele: The Complete Works, London, 1998, no. 2217, illustrated p. 608

Executed on cream wove paper, backed with Japan paper, floating in the mount. There is a small paper loss in the top right corner. There appear to be some repaired tears and creases which are supported by the lining paper. Colours: Overall fairly accurate in the printed catalogue illustration, although the charcoal is stronger in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In 1918 Schiele executed four charcoal drawings of a young woman, identified by Jane Kallir as Mrs Berger-Lampl. Little is know about the artist's relationship with this model. Hilde Berger was the wife of Fritz Lampl, a Viennese writer and poet. During the First World War, Fritz and his writer and artist friends used to gather in the Café Herrenhof, the meeting place of intellectuals. It was here that he met Hilde, sister of two architects and designers, Joseph and Artur Berger, and the two married after the end of the war. Fritz belonged to a group of artists involved in Schiele's project for the Kunsthalle in 1917, which was to be a gathering place for artists, writers, architects and musicians, and for which Schiele wrote a manifesto. While the project attracted a number of artists and intellectuals, including Gustav Klimt, it was ultimately abandoned, mainly due to lack of financial support. In the 1920s Fritz, together with Hilde's brother Joseph Berger, started a glass manufacturing business. In 1938 Hilde and Fritz Lampl emigrated to London, where Fritz continued his glass business. Both Hilde and Fritz died in London in the 1950s.

 

By 1918 Schiele was recognised as a master draughtsman, and had reached a maturity which was particularly evident in his renderings of female models. No longer the adolescent focusing almost entirely on their sexuality, he was now able to render his female sitters with a sense of alertness and individuality, beautifully rendered in the present work. Discussing Schiele's drawings from this last year of his life, Jane Kallir observed: 'Few artists in history have managed to express the spirit of their subjects with such economy of means. In his nudes, Schiele strove for purity of form; in his portraits, for purity of being. With the precision of stop-action photography, Schiele could catch a moving body, or the flicker of emotion – a quivering lip, a furrowed brow – as it passed fleetingly across a sitter's face. In this, he ranks alongside such artists as Hans Holbein as one of the greatest draftsmen of all times. Because Schiele plumbed the very souls of his subjects, his drawings remain as fresh and vital today as they were when made. There is a timelessness to Schiele's best work that speaks to the unchanging essence of humanity across time and space' (J. Kallir, Egon Schiele: Drawings and Watercolours, London, 2003, p. 442).