Egon Schiele’s Primary School Class in Tulln, c. 1898

The life of Egon Schiele (1890–1918) is documented in numerous photographs. His family setup changed as early as 1893, when Elvira (1883–1893), the eldest of his three sisters, died aged only ten. She was followed by Egon’s father Adolf Eugen Schiele (1850–1904) in 1904. This marked a turning point in the young artist’s life and would also come to influence his style. Schiele spent his childhood in the town of Tulln near Vienna, where he also went to primary school (Schiele is in the second row from behind, seventh from the left). He later attended secondary school in Klosterneuburg, which opened the doors to the art scene of the capital for him: His art teacher Ludwig Karl Strauch (1875–1959) as well as the local painter Max Kahrer (1878–1937) discovered his talent and supported his application for the Vienna Academy, which he attended from 1906 until he left voluntarily in 1909. That same year he was able to exhibit at the Internationale Kunstschau, thanks to the support of his friend and mentor Gustav Klimt (1862–1918), whom he had met in 1907.

AKe, 2023