Sarena Lederer 1917

Egon Schiele made this portrait of Sarena Lederer, but I don’t know when, or with what; although, just looking at it, I can imagine the charcoal stick in his hand, nervous and scratchy. The lines seem to be hunting for something, but they're not quite sure what, or where to land. Schiele's lines evoke a feeling of being unsettled, like he's constantly searching. I wonder what it was like for him to make this image? I get the sense he might have been a bit twitchy himself, and it shows in the nervous energy of his mark-making. The face of the sitter looks out with big eyes, framed by a cloud of curls, all described with dark lines. The hands, oh those clasped hands! They're like a visual puzzle, a knot of fingers that seems both vulnerable and strangely powerful. What is she thinking as she clutches her hands? What did Schiele intend? Uncertainty and experimentation are part of the process—maybe he saw a painting that way too, as an open-ended conversation.