Standing Nude with Large Hat (Gertrude Schiele) 1910

Egon Schiele sketched this standing nude, likely with graphite on paper, sometime before his untimely death in 1918. The pose is striking; her hands are contorted, almost claw-like. In this distortion, do we see echoes of the Mannerist affectations of Pontormo, whose figures twist and turn in a dance of ambiguity? Consider the large hat, a symbol of status and protection, yet here, it seems to offer little solace, failing to soften the angularity of the figure. One is reminded of archaic images of women in veils, guarding against the male gaze. But Schiele subverts this; his nude is not coy, but exposed. There's a raw, psychological intensity, perhaps a reflection of the subconscious anxieties of his time. This is not merely a portrait, but a psychic landscape, revealing the fragile boundary between protection and vulnerability. The cyclical nature of such symbols persists, reflecting our perpetual negotiation with visibility and concealment.