Girl 1918

Egon Schiele made this drawing, Girl, with pencil on paper sometime around the turn of the century. The girl’s limbs seem almost knotted. With a feverish intensity, Schiele captures her tangled body and long flowing hair. You can see the influence of artists like Edvard Munch in the vulnerability of his subjects, but Schiele's line is all his own. What was he thinking, I wonder, when he made it? Was it a quick sketch or did he labor for hours, days, or weeks? Did he work from life? It feels intimate. Did he know her? Did he care for her? Did she sit there, writhing with angst and teenage boredom? For me, his works resonate because he was feeling his way through form and feeling, just like the rest of us artists. His mark-making feels raw, but in that awkwardness, there is also honesty. That’s what keeps me coming back. I love how artists are in an ongoing conversation across time, sharing and sparking one another’s creativity.