Karl Schageter – Woman Reading a Book
Karl Schlageter (Swiss, 1894–1990)
Seated Woman Reading
Oil on board, signed upper left.
Canvas Dimensions: Width 24 x Height 34.5 cm
A sensitive modernist portrait composition depicting a seated young woman absorbed in reading. Executed in expressive, painterly brushwork, the composition is built from softly harmonized greens, muted blues, warm flesh tones, and pale cream highlights, creating a quiet and contemplative atmosphere.
The simplified treatment of form and loose handling of paint reflect mid century European expressionist influences, while the intimate subject matter gives the work a calm domestic character. Presented in a softly distressed painted wooden frame well suited to the palette and period feel of the painting.
1894-1990
Karl Schlageter (1894–1990) was a Swiss painter born in Lucerne, active during the first half of the twentieth century in Switzerland and Germany. He studied in Munich and worked in a range of genres including portraiture, landscape painting, mural decoration, and figurative subjects. During his career he spent time in several European artistic centers including Munich, Berlin, Paris, Rome, and Vienna before eventually returning to Switzerland.
Schlageter’s work reflects the academic and figurative traditions of Central European painting of the interwar period, with a particular sensitivity to portraiture and atmosphere. His paintings are held in private collections and have appeared regularly on the European art market.
