Egon Schiele with palette, Sep. 1906

Egon Schiele (1890–1918) was accepted at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts when he was 16 years old, in October 1906. He studied at the Academy for a total of six semesters. Shortly before his acceptance, in September of the same year, this photograph was taken, showing the young artist in a suit, holding a palette and painting tools. Schiele is looking out of the photograph with big eyes, calmly, yet expectantly. After largely unsuccessful years at school, during which he had felt misunderstood, he was now finally able to focus on his artistic activities. His ambitions were dampened by the Academy’s conservative spirit, however, which is why he left the Academy prematurely after completing his triennium in 1909. A Calling Card and a Triangular Protractor survive from his time at the Academy.

KJ, 2023