Estate of the artist
Melanie Schiele Schuster
Rudolf Leopold, Vienna
Private Collection, Southern Germany
Sale: Ketterer Kunst, Munich, December 5, 2003, lot 45
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Jane Kallir, Egon Schiele: The Complete Works, New York, 1990, no. 1521, illustrated p. 526

Work is in very good condition. Executed on hand-made paper with many visible fibers, which over time have caused the surface of the sheet to appear slightly uneven. Other fibers in the paper have caused scattered dark spots. The sheet is slightly light struck. Hinged to the mat in two places along top edge near top corners. Artist's pinholes in all four corners. Otherwise fine. Line is very well preserved.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Schiele first met Poldi Lodzinsky, the daughter of a cab driver from Krumau, in 1910. He immediately started making portraits of her and continued to use her as a model for several years. His studies of Poldi between 1910 and 1914 portrayed her progression from child to young woman. In the present dra𝓡wi🎐ng, the artist has captured her self-assured, youthful gaze with a few strokes of crayon.

Rudolf Leopold discusses a similar drawing executed in the same year as the present work: "Several drawings exist of this model Poldi. The treatment of the face ranks among the finest testimonials to Schiele's graphic artistry. The clarity and delicacy of the strokes is unsurpassed. Schiele has also caught the expression of the face in a masterly way: it reflects the model's tension following a fixed pose of long duration" (R. Leopold, Egon Schiele, Paintings, Watercolours, Drawings, New York, 1972, p. 356).