Portrait of a Woman

Art Historical Context

### Portrait of a Woman, 1910 This intimate color lithograph, *Portrait of a Woman*, the bold vision of Egon Schiele in collaboration with the Wiener Werkstätte, Vienna's innovative design collective. Created in 1910, when Schiele was just , the print measures a petite 5½ x 3½ inches—perfect for a postcard or personal keepsake. Produced using lithography, a technique where greasy crayon drawings on stone are inked and transferred to paper, it exemplifies early 20th-century efforts to blend fine art with accessible reproduction. Schiele, a rising star of Austrian Expressionism, drew influence from Gustav Klimt and the Vienna Secession while forging his signature style of raw, angular forms and psychological intensity. The Wiener Werkstätte, founded in 1903 by Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser, championed the Gesamtkunstwerk—total artwork—merging graphics, jewelry, and furniture in a modern Jugendstil aesthetic. This piece reflects that ethos, turning Schiele's edgy portraiture into a vibrant, colorful print. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, it highlights Vienna's pre-World War I cultural ferment, where art challenged conventions and explored the human spirit. A fascinating snapshot of modernism's dawn, it invites us to ponder the enigmatic woman's gaze amid Europe's artistic revolution.