Russian Prisoner of War (Grigori Kladjishuli) 1916

Egon Schiele made this watercolor and pencil drawing, Russian Prisoner of War, at an unknown date. See how the lines are wiry, almost nervous? There's this sense of searching, of not quite settling. It reminds me that artmaking is a process, not just a product. Now, look at the texture, how the watercolor bleeds into the paper, leaving these subtle stains. The color is thin in parts, almost transparent, and yet, in other areas, like the face and hand, there’s a concentrated intensity of pigment. Schiele makes the most of this fleshy, almost brutal use of color. Take a look at the way the prisoner’s fingers are drawn; they’re like raw, exposed nerves, vulnerable and slightly unsettling. That hand is like a key to the whole piece, both formally and emotionally. I see some of Gustav Klimt in this portrait, especially in the use of line and the frankness of feeling. Schiele is in conversation with other artists, figuring out his own voice, just like we all do. Art is about embracing those uncertainties, those unresolved questions.