Self Portrait 1910

This is Egon Schiele's self-portrait. It’s hard to know exactly when it was made, and it's now held in a private collection. Look at the tentative strokes around his face, they are almost like a caress! I imagine Schiele peering into the mirror, grappling with his own image. It's like he’s trying to capture something beyond the surface, maybe a glimpse of his inner self. The ochre background is almost sepia. It's thin, almost translucent, so that the paper is showing through. Then, the dark outlines of his eyes, nose and mouth are more definite. You can feel the weight of the line, see the texture of the charcoal or pencil. It’s a testament to the way that the simple medium of line alone can carry so much emotion, so much expression. It feels like a conversation between artists across time, all trying to make sense of our place in the world. Each mark feels so urgent, so present.