Smaragda Berg

• Richard Gerstl (1883–1908)
• 1906/07
• Oil on canvas
• Private Collection

A woman is sitting in an upper-class interior, gazing directly at the viewer. She is illuminated by a bright light. The pointillism technique of applying dots of colors was used. The sitter is Smaragda Berg, a pianist and the sister of the composer Alban Berg. Richard Gerstl and Berg were a part of the composer Arnold Schönberg’s circle of friends. Gerstl did not participate in the Vienna Secession but enjoyed close friendships with musicians and developed a distinctive and expressive style using intense and energetic brushstrokes.