Egon SCHIELE (1890-1918)* Femme allongée en tenue légère, 1917 Crayon noir sur papier, signé et daté 1917 en bas au milieu à gauche Porte un cachet de l'artiste “Egon Schiele 17” au dos 46 x 29.9 cm - 181/8 x 12 in. Woman in Underclothes Leaning Backward, 1917 Black pencil on paper, signed and dated 1917 lower middle left Stamp from artist's estate “Egon Schiele 17” on reverse Provenance : Galerie Wuerthle, Vienna Dover Street Gallery, London Collection privée, New York Un certificat de Jane Kallir daté 2002, référencé Kallir D1959A, New York sera remis à l'acquéreur Accompanied by a photo-certificate dated 2002 from Jane Kallir, New York, Kallir D1959A Ce dessin exceptionnel, créé l'année précédant la mort tragique de l'artiste à 28 ans, compte parmi les œuvres les plus achevées réalisées à la fin de sa vie. Ces images, la plupart sur papier, ont une puissance, un érotisme et une innovation dans la description du corps humain qui les placent au premier rang de ce genre dans l'histoire de l'Art. Elles appuient les critiques dans leur affirmation d'Egon Schiele comme le dessinateur le plus doué et le plus créatif du vingtième siècle, dont seul Picasso est le rival. Restant fidèle à son style expressionniste très personnel, la “femme allongée” reflète la passion de l'artiste pour la figure féminine et son souci de rendre vivant le corps de son modèle et sa psychologie profonde. Par un trait d'une finesse extrême, il en souligne chaque courbe et chaque mouvement, rendant palpable l'énergie qui s'en dégage. La façon dont la silhouette arquée se tord en une pose sinueuse et expressive dégage un érotisme explicite renforcé par le fond nu qui sculpte le corps et fixe l'instant. Le monogramme de l'artiste est mis de façon à orienter le dessin vers une lecture verticale et lui donner une sorte de “maladresse spatiale” qui augmente l'intensité érotique et l'impact sensuel. This exceptional drawing, conceived the year before the artist's tragic and premature death at the age of 28, figures amongst Schiele's most consummate body of work completed during the last months of his life, laying testament to critics' claims that Schiele was the most gifted and innovative draughtsman of the 20th century, rivaled only by Picasso. Schiele's obsession with the nude body and its expressive depiction dates back to 1910. As his access to models was limited at the early point in his career, many of the nudes that the artist completed were of himself. However, his passion laid in the female form, and the artist seized every opportunity to capture the curves and contours of any woman or girl willing to pose for him. This work that we are presenting belongs to a series of drawing of half nude women in their underclothes that is considered to be some of the finest of Schiele's works executed in 1917, a period marked by his maturity and depth as an artist that is suffused with eroticism and energy. Remaining faithful to his highly individual Expressionist style, Woman in Underclothes Leaning Backward reflects not only the artist's passion for the female anatomy but also his concern with captivating and depicting the living nature of the human form over the individuality and inner psychology of the figure. The woman depicted is most likely a professional model that Schiele used, for by the end of his career, his financial situation had radically transformed and he was able for the first time to recruit a veritable harem of models in his studio, much like his great hero Gustav Klimt. As his career progressed, Schiele learned to calm and channel the intractable energy of his former needle-like line in favor of a more objective and almost clinical examination of the human figure. In this present work, the artist seems to trace and explore the harmonious rhythm of every contour of the model, creating a palpable sense of energy and movement. The way that the balletic and rounded figure arches backward in a sinuous and expressive pose evokes the overt eroticism that is signature to the artist's oeuvre. This style of the Schiele's later work that is found especially in this drawing is strikingly reminiscent of the great Italian Symbolist Giovanni Sergantini, as the contorted pose of the figure seems wrought with an inner desperation to outwardly express herself corporally. This vigorous current of energy is contrasted sharply against a blank background, which seems to play a key role in further sculpting the pose and capturing its immediacy. The artist's monogrammatic signature furthermore served an important and logistical purpose in his works, suggesting that the drawing be read vertically, thereby infusing it with a sort of spatial distortion that heightens its overall erotic and sensual impact. Schiele's fascination with and command of the female figure count this work amongt some of the most powerful, erotic, challenging and progressive images of the human body in art history. Estimation sur demande