Egon Schiele:
Seated Girl with Long Blond Hair, 1912 (Sitzendes Mädchen mit langem blondem Haar)
Gouache, watercolor and pencil on paper
45.1 × 31.7 cm
Private collection
(Kallir d1092)

This portrait likely depicts Wally Neuzil, Schiele’s companion, model, and lover from 1911 to 1915. Wally is known to have had red hair, but Schiele often altered physical features in his portraits—changing hair color, body proportions, or facial structure—to suit the emotional tone or compositional needs of a work. The long blond hair here may reflect such a choice rather than a literal likeness.

Wally appears in many of Schiele’s works from this period, often with a quiet, introspective presence. In this drawing, her seated pose and turned-away gaze suggest a moment of stillness or withdrawal. The use of gouache and watercolor softens the figure, while the pencil lines retain Schiele’s signature sharpness and psychological intensity.

It has occasionally been suggested that Wally may have modeled for Gustav Klimt before meeting Schiele, though there is no firm documentation to confirm this. What is more widely accepted is that Schiele met Wally through Klimt’s circle—possibly via Klimt himself, who had a reputation for mentoring younger artists and introducing them to models and patrons.

Created in 1912, this work belongs to a phase in which Schiele’s draftsmanship grew increasingly confident and his exploration of human vulnerability deepened. Wally’s presence here is rendered with raw honesty—neither eroticized nor idealized, but emotionally resonant.