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Egon Schiele

Egon Schiele at “our place” (April 1911 – August 1911)

In 2011 it would be exactly 100 years since Egon Schiele dwelled in the summerhouse owned by Max Tschunko, who was at that time the owner of our house number 271. We are convinced that this unchained artist thanks to his contacts with Mr. Tschunko visited many times our house and guests of our guesthouse have thus unique chance to “touch” footsteps of the genius literally.

On the occasion of anniversary of Egon Schiele´s residence “at our place” we dared to decorate our house with print copies of his work and to present the segment of the artist´s life relating to his stay in the summerhouse in our web sites.

When Schiele, solitary at that time, arrived from Vienna in April 1911, and got view of that small terraced plot near the meander of the river Vltava stream in the southern part of the town, he took firm decision to enthrone in Krumlov.

Schiele´s assistant Willi Lidl, who accepted service for his beloved idol as a meaning of his life, and who could even read every request in Schiele´s eyes, discovered this outstanding vacant snuggery. Max Tschunko, local merchant with textiles, was the owner. Lidl negotiated with Mr. Tschunko not only terms of lease, but also set necessary work on reconstruction of the house in motion.

One month later Schiele returned again to move into the amazing summerhouse with flowers in the garden around it as he described it keenly to his Maecenas, Viennese art dealer Oskar Reichl, this time together with his lover Wally Neuzil.

Life in a couple in such idyll only ten minutes of walk from the town centre began well: Schiele drew and painted like obsessed. Wally looked after little household and thanks to generosity of Mr. Tschunko, who forgave his leaseholders paying the rent, the couple is able to make both ends meet even with the little money left.

Danger threatens from narrow-minded petit- bourgeoisies, who observed Schiele´s extravagant life style with grudge even since previous year.

The simple fact, that some man shares his home with a woman without marriage, provoked attacks of umbrage among good manner protectors in Krumlov. And if later gossip began going round that young girls could be seen coming in and out the Schiele´s place to pose as models lightly clad, real scandal arose, when one of those girls was allegedly seen posing quite naked in front of the rose bush in the garden accessible from three sides to the stranger´s eyes. Souls of the moral apostles bubbled over with a wrath and the landlord Mr. Tschunko despite of his open attitude to all art and his sympathy to his wanton subtenants had to retreat to the public pressure. Schiele was sacked. He obtained 8-day term to get off the summerhouse.

On 31^st June Schiele wrote to Arthur Roesler to Vienna:

“You know how I enjoy dwelling in Krumlov and now it will be made impossible to me. Those people are simply boycotting us, because we are the Reds. I have to move out till 6^th August, however I want to leave already on 4^th namely for Neulengbach. Please, send me some money, because I must send several cases yet.”

After his arrival in Vienna, Schiele´s final written word in the letter to Arthur Roessler sounds:

“I don´t want to think about Krumlov anymore, I used to love this town thus much. But those people don´t know what they do.”

This sad way the life period of Egon Schiele, directly adherent to our house and to his owner Mr. Tschunko at that time, ended.

More information about Egon Schiele´s stay in the summerhouse “at our place” you can find in wonderful book “Schiele and Krumlov” written by Franz E. Wischin.

Who meets Schiele´s art for the first time he or she is mostly overwhelmed- and perhaps often even shocked - by the power of his expression. If someone studies Schiele´s work more intensively, he or she must be attracted by purity of expression and frankness of the form. Wide explication seems to be useless in case of Schiele, because his message is spontaneous non- complicated and convincing without any doubt.

Mystique of life is based on visible, not on invisible.

On the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of Egon Schiele´s stay in the summerhouse owned by Mr. Max Tschunko, who also owned our house number 271, we dared to commemorate this life period of the unchained artist.

Egon Schiele

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