Observed in a Dream

Austrian Expressionist painter Egon Schiele presents the erotic and the provocative in his watercolor painting, Observed in a Dream. A protégé of Gustav Klimt, Schiele often explored sexuality in his art. While most of his works around 1911 were densely painted with gloomy earth tones, this piece is sparsely painted with bright pops of color. The painting depicts a woman lying supine, her head tilted and her face partially obscured by black fabric. She has a dreamy, relaxed expression on her face and the eye that is not shrouded by the fabric is gazing downward. With her legs apart, she is casually spreading her labia with both hands, fully exposing her genitals. Intense vulnerability and raw sexuality are on display in this portrait.