Portrait of Painlevé, 1929

Jean (Hans) Egger (1897–1934), born in Carinthia, studied painting at the Munich Academy. From 1925, he lived mainly in Paris, where he focused on painting portraits and landscapes. At the salon of Sophie Clemenceau-Szeps (1862–1937), who lived with her husband in France and was the sister of Berta Zuckerkandl-Szeps (1864–1945), Egger found an illustrious clientele, including the French mathematician and statesman Paul Painlevé (1863–1933), of whom the artist painted three portraits. This bust portrait shows Painlevé in a dark suit in front of a bright background. Egger renders the clothes with expressive brushstrokes and a pastose application of paint. The detailed delineation of the eye area creates an emotional expression. Green shadows and red marks enliven the physiognomy, which appears serious and pensive. Expressionism did not focus on producing an external likeness, but rather on depicting an internal, mental state.

AK, 2022