Egon Schiele was a meteor that flashed across the galaxy of Viennese art at the beginning of the last century. Although he lived only twenty-eight years-dying quite suddenly of influenza in 1918 just as World War I came to an end-he left a stunning pictorial oeuvre. Schiele's obsession with sexuality, his own and that of others, made him at once a voyeur and a participant in that sexual imperative which Freud was simultaneously plumbing with such unsettling results. The disturbing revelations of Schiele's unmasking portraiture and of the new science of psychology disclosed a collective cultural anxiety during the last years of the crumbling Austrian empire. As a seer into the souls of his sitters, Schiele redefined portraiture in the age of Angst. Alessandra Comini is University Distinguished Professor of Art History Emerita at Southern Methodist University, where she taught for thirty-one years after having served on the faculty at Columbia University for ten years. She is the author of eight books, one of which, "Egon Schiele's Portraits," was nominated for the National Book Award. The Republic of Austria extended her its Grand Decoration of Honor in 1990. This is her third book on the artist; she has also published "Schiele in Prison," an extended essay and English translation of the 1912, makeshift diary Schiele kept during his twenty-four days in a provincial prison cell-a forgotten cell which she discovered and photographed in 1963. The cell is now part of a Schiele Museum in the village of Neulengbach. Her 2014 Megan Crespi mystery novel, "Killing for Klimt," is followed by "The Schiele Slaughters."

A century after his death, Egon Schiele continues to stun with his contorted lines, distorted bodies, and eroticism. This XXL-sized book features the complete catalogue of his paintings from 1909-1918. Nearly 600 illustrations are presented, many of them newly photographed, alongside expert insights and Schiele's personal writings in this...

This work traces Schiele's development as a portraitist through four principal chronological phases, from 1906 through 1918. Starting with the artists rigorous training at the Vienna Academy, it chronicles Schiele's eventual break with academia and the emergence of his Expressionistic style.

'Fascinating & compelling. I loved all four women' ELODIE HARPER, author of THE WOLF DEN 'MAGNIFICENT...It's simply too good' KATIE LOWE, author of THE FURIES 'Utterly compelling' KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE, author of THE MERCIES ___________________________________________ Vienna, 1912. Behind every painting, there is a story... A new century is dawning. Vienna is at its zenith, an opulent, extravagant city teeming with art, music and radical ideas. It is a place where anything seems possible... Edith and Adele are sisters, the daughters of a wealthy bourgeois family. They are expected to follow the rules, to marry well, and produce children. Gertrude is in thrall to her flamboyant older brother. Marked by a traumatic childhood, she envies the freedom he so readily commands. Vally was born into poverty but is making her way in the world as a model for the eminent artist Gustav Klimt. Fierce, passionate and determined, none of these women is quite what they seem. But their lives are set on a collision course when they become entangled with the controversial young artist Egon Schiele whose work - and private life - are sending shockwaves through Viennese society. All it will take is a single act of betrayal to set their world on fire... _______________________________ 'Glorious' Guardian 'Intoxicating and evocative...full of controversy and drama. We loved it' Woman & Home 'Thought provoking and illuminating - I so enjoyed discovering the world and the women behind works of art I adore' KATE SAWYER, author of THE STRANDING 'An exquisite sense of place and era with a passion and sensuality that transcend time altogether.' ISABEL COSTELLO, author of SCENT 'Confident...urgent...illuminating' Sunday Times 'Impressive' The Times 'A stunning story of love, art and betrayal' RED magazine 'Full of scandal, love, betrayal, and heartache' Cosmopolitan 'Mesmerising' Good Housekeeping 'A drama of love, loss, rivalry and betrayal. A terrific debut, brilliantly imagined' Saga Debut of the Month 'An unforgettable book about wanting more for ourselves than we are told we are allowed' Ericka Waller, author of Dog Days

With his revolutionary and liberated view of the naked body and sexuality, Egon Schiele emphatically wrote himself into the history of art at the beginning of the last century. Even today, the women and self-portraits painted by the enfant terrible of the Viennese modern age still have an exciting and bold effect. They were all created during...