Old Gable 1913

Egon Schiele made this painting of an Old Gable with oil on canvas. It's all about the touch, the visible stroke. He's not trying to hide his process here; the way he attacks the surface is kind of aggressive, right? Look at the roofline, those thick, dark strokes of blue-black paint. They aren't just describing the shape of the building, but also the weight of the structure, the density of the shadows. The colors are muted but somehow also jarring. The ochres and reds of the brick are layered with these hits of violet, creating a kind of unsettling harmony. And the surface! You can almost feel the texture of the brushstrokes, the way the paint sits on the canvas, rough and uneven. It’s like a visual record of his own movement, his own struggle to capture something about this dilapidated structure. Think of Van Gogh, another master of expressive brushwork. Both artists use the act of painting itself as a way to convey not just what they see, but also how they feel. Ultimately the work remains open, a testament to the ongoing conversation that is art.