Standing woman with raised skirt

Details

Kallir D 2412. Literature: Karpfen, Fritz (ed.), Das Egon-Schiele-Buch, Vienna/Leipzig 1921, with ill. 38. Exhibitions: Egon Schiele. Gedächtnisausstellung, Graphische collection of Albertina, Vienna 1948, cat. no.326; Egon Schiele. An Exhibition of Drawings and Watercolors, Galerie Serge Sabarsky, New York 1974, cat. no.7; Egon Schiele, Pinacoteca Capitolina, Rom et. al. 1984-1987, cat. no.174, with ill. Egon Schiele. Von Schüler zum Meister, Akademie der bildenden Künste, Vienna et. al. 1984-1988, cat. no.95 and 96; Egon Schiele. 100 Zeichnungen und Aquarelle, Städtische Galerie Rosenheim et. al. 1988-1993, cat. no.93; Egon Schiele, Mezinárodní kulturní centrum Egona Schieleho, Kret. al. 1996, S. 216 f.; Egon Schiele, Listasafn Íslands, Reykjavik 1996; Egon Schiele 1890-1918, MAN Museo d’Arte Provincia di Nuoro, Nuoro 2007/08; Galerie St. Etienne, New York 2017. Provenance: Frederic Knize (Fritz Wolff-Knize, 1890-1949), Vienna/New York; collection of/estate of Serge Sabarsky, New York, since around 1983; collection of/Foundation Vally Sabarsky, New York.

Descrizione

• Impressive drawing from the artist’s late phase showing traces of Mannerism and Realism
• Masterful use of black chalk
• Characteristic motif of a woman as a deliberate staging of the body and sexuality

Egon Schiele was one of the most important and radical draughtsmen of the 20th century. The great collector and Schiele specialist Rudolf Leopold writes about the artist: “The pictorial medium that Schiele first created for himself and with which he first demonstrated his artistic originality, indeed mastery, was the personal line.” And further: “No other artist has used line drawing so skilfully and expressively: cuttingly hard and supple – constructive or fragile – brittle, nervous, as if scribbling or tense – interrupted or extending violently.” This drawing of a standing woman also demonstrates Schiele’s masterful use of black chalk: The lines vary from thick to thin, from almost black to a light grey. Here he utilises the full potential of the pen. In the artist’s late work, there is a certain degree of mannerism with the elaboration of realistic details. Schiele draws the tights with the reinforced heel, the right shoe with laces, hints at the chequered pattern of the skirt and jacket and the lace of the knee-length bloomers. At the same time, the figure seems to burst out of the sheet, her head and feet extending beyond the edges of the paper. The woman, standing with her legs apart, holds the fabric in her right hand, rests her left arm on her hip and looks down at herself. This dynamic pose is further emphasised by the flowing, undulating strokes. The spirited lines and the composition demonstrate the mastery that Schiele achieved in these drawings of his final years.