Egon Schiele, Heinrich Wagner, Leutnant i. d. Reserve (Portrait of Reserve Lieutenant Heinrich Wagner) 1917 - Heeresgeschichtliches Museum, Vienna
Another bleak painting, though from almost the polar opposite of Dix yesterday. In this piece it is the lack of detail, the blankness, that is striking. A face, medals and hands that appear to come out of nowhere. The most stunning feature of this piece is the fact there is no background whatsoever. Portraits are usually supposed to humanise the subject, especially during wartime, but with this piece, I feel that facet is completely lacking.
And for the first time on this blog, I am finding it extremely difficult to place into words how the piece makes me feel. On the one hand, I draw a blank, yet on the other, I feel I could write and write and write and not come anywhere close to my inner feelings of this work.
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