4. The Embrace by Egon Schiele
I love the tenderness and passion that Egon Schiele portrayed. This painting is one of the most outstanding of the Vienna Secessionist period. While still studying art in Vienna, Schiele rapidly developed his own, unmistakeable language of form. Starting out from Art Nouveau, he combined ornamental structure with a fractured line and expressive colouring. Egon Schiele was born in Tulln in 1890 and grew up in humble conditions. Despite the protests of his uncle and guardian, Leopold Czihaczek, Schiele took the demanding entrance exam at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts in 1906. However, he dropped out after only three years, due to fierce controversies with his professor, Christian Griepenkerl, who was opposed to all innovation in the visual arts. In 1909, Schiele founded the New Art Group together with such young artist friends as Anton Faistauer and Franz Wiegele. That same year, the group first presented itself at the Vienna Salon Pisko, but, after several exhibitions that were to follow, remained only loosely connected.