EGON SCHIELE | Liegende (Reclining Woman)

Galerie Wolfrum, Vienna
Acquired from the above by the present owner in the 1960s

Executed on cream wove paper, not laid down and floating in the mount. There are four artist's pin-holes to the left, upper and lower edges of the sheet. The sheet is lightly time-stained and there are some very minor spots of foxing to the background. Otherwise this work is in very good overall condition.
"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."

Egon Schiele’s early watercolours and drawings of nude or scantily clad women are some of the most technically sophisticated and provocative images in the history of Western Art. While these raw and often vulnerable depictions of young women caused a great deal of scandal during Schiele’s lifetime, the artist’s more prescient contemporaries, including his mentor Gustav Klimt, recognised the unmatched sophistication and perspicacity in his rendering of the human form. With her undergarments drawn up to display her stockings and her hand resting between her thighs, the young model in Liegende radiates a palpable erotic appeal.

This hauntingly sensual pose is intensified by the model’s averted gaze, her downcast eyes reveal her to be absorbed in the moment, oblivious to the artist or any observer, placing the viewer in the role of a voyeur. The economy of Schiele's line sharpens these effects; his contours are assured, varied and unerringly interwoven throughout. Even in his most explicit of auto-erotic representations, Schiele eclipses the shock-value of his subject with his brilliance as a draughtsman, capturing the intricacy and proportional balance of the recumbent and foreshortened figure here with incomparable virtuosity.

The authenticity of this work has been confirmed by Jane Kallir and it has been assigned the provisional number D. 1307A for inclusion in the digital update of her Catalogue raisonné Egon Schiele: The Complete Works (anticipated October 2018).