#37959 Egon Schiele (1890-1918)

Description of Egon Schiele’s painting "The Family

"The Family" by Egon Schiele is one of the most difficult paintings the author has painted. In 1918, Europe was gripped by a terrible disease that claimed the lives of over ten million people. The Spanish flu was a horror for everyone in Europe.

The artist depicted himself, his wife Edith Harms and their unborn child in the center of the painting. Contrary to Schiele’s style, which is characterized by unnatural poses of depicted characters that go beyond the picture, the main characters of this canvas are depicted extremely calm. One gets the impression that the artist predicted the tragic turn of events that awaited him: pregnant Edith died of Spanish flu in the sixth month of pregnancy, and three days after the death of his wife in the world went himself Schille.

The skinny man at the top of the image sits quietly and looks directly into the center of the picture. The expression on his face does not express concern or horror, he seems to be just waiting for something to happen. The man’s skin is predominantly done in yellow and orange, with many places accentuated with a red hue. The man’s left hand is resting on his leg, and he is scratching his shoulder with his right hand. Below the main character is depicted a beautiful naked woman. Her face also does not express anxiety: on the contrary, it looks quite calm and resigned. Unlike her husband, her skin is predominantly done in pink with flecks of orange. The pose in which the woman sits somewhat resembles that of the husband. At the mother’s feet, a small child can be discerned looking to the side. He has his little arms around a pillow. The background is very blurry, but you can guess that the family is sitting on a sofa or just a pile of blankets and sheets. The dark brown, red and gray of the background is diluted with slight green and blue elements.

The heavy painting has become an illustration of the word "Spanish". Tomorrowful anticipation of the inevitable, resignation to pain and loss - all this was conveyed in the image by the master.