Egon Schiele
Austria (1890—1918)Born in Tulln, near Vienna, Egon Schiele showed an early talent for drawing. After his father’s death in 1905, his uncle supported his artistic ambitions. In 1906, Schiele entered the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, leaving in 1909 to pursue an independent career. He met Gustav Klimt in 1907, who became his mentor and helped him exhibit at the Internationale Kunstschau in Vienna in 1909. His work focused on the human figure, with an intense treatment of the body and sexuality. He exhibited with the Neukunstgruppe and took part in the Sonderbund exhibition in Cologne. In 1911, he met Wally Neuzil, his model and companion. The following year, he was arrested and convicted for exhibiting drawings deemed immoral in a place accessible to minors. In 1915, he married Edith Harms. In 1918, he exhibited at the 49th Vienna Secession exhibition. Edith, six months pregnant, died of Spanish flu on 28 October. Schiele died of the same illness three days later, aged 28.
