Facing the Modern: The Portrait in Vienna 1900

Introspective exhibition at the National Gallery looking at portraiture in Vienna around 1900.

I liked the fact that it wasn’t just the expressionist artists you might expect but also included more classic works. I also liked the fact that it was arranged in the themes but it did mean it jumped around quite a lot chronologically and it covered a much wider period of time than the title implied. The familiar space of the Sainsbury Wing exhibition space was broke up in a different way by false walls which gave an interesting claustrophobic feel which matched the art.

It gave a real view of the society at the time looking both at what it wanted to show to the world but also at the problems they faced. I liked the room of self-portraits of artists and the room on death was morbid but fascinating.

My favourite picture was “Nude portrait of Mariette” by Bronica Koller, a picture of an artist’s model but presented as a portrait with her head against a gold square. There were some beautiful Klimpt’s and I came away with a better understanding of Schiele.

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