Die Neukunstgruppe and Friends of Schiele: Anton Faistauer
Lady in a red dress (1918) – Anton Faistauer
coloured chalk on paper
42 x 26 cm
Auctioned at Im Kinsky in 2023

Anton Faistauer (1887–1930) was an Austrian painter known for his expressive style and bold use of color. He was born into a farming family and originally thought about becoming a priest, but eventually chose to study art. After attending private painting schools and the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, he left the Academy in 1909 to help start the Neukunstgruppe (New Art Group) with Egon Schiele, Anton Kolig, Robin Christian Andersen, and Franz Wiegele. The group pushed back against traditional art and stayed active until 1912.

Faistauer later married Ida Andersen, the sister of Robin Christian Andersen. Their relationship was close and tied to the artistic world they shared. In 1919, Faistauer founded a new group called Der Sonderbund Wassermann (often just called Der Wassermann) in Salzburg, focused on modern and progressive art. Sadly, Ida died the night before the group’s first exhibition, which was a heavy blow for Faistauer.

Der Wassermann included artists like Felix Albrecht Harta, Franz von Zülow, Anton Kolig, and Carry Hauser. They wanted to bring fresh ideas to Austrian painting after the war and move away from academic traditions.

Faistauer remarried two years later to Margarethe Krieger, but the marriage didn’t last. Despite personal losses and health problems, he kept working. In the 1920s, he painted frescoes for the Kleines Festspielhaus in Salzburg and did murals for buildings in Bamberg and Vienna. He turned down a teaching job at the Academy in 1926, possibly because of his poor health.

He spent his final years in Vienna and traveled to Italy for inspiration and treatment. Faistauer died in 1930 after surgery and was buried in Maishofen. A memorial was designed by architect Clemens Holzmeister.

His life after World War I was shaped by grief, creativity, and a strong belief in modern art. His connection to Ida and Robin Christian Andersen shows how personal and artistic lives were closely linked in Austria’s early expressionist movement.