Opening Night Lecture: Dr. Erwin von Graff and Egon Schiele
Dr. Elisabeth Dutz presents new scholarship along with previously unseen images and diary entries to provide a detailed biography of the Viennese physician who was so impressively portrayed by Schiele.
Elisabeth Dutz, Chief Curator of Graphic Art, Albertina Museum, Vienna
Dr. Erwin von Graff was an early admirer and patron of Egon Schiele, supporting the artist throughout his career and personal life and accompanying him at his deathbed. This lecture, hosted on the opening day of the special exhibition “Egon Schiele: Portrait of Dr. Erwin von Graff,” explores the stories behind this friendship and presents new scholarship along with previously unseen images and diary entries to provide a detailed biography of the Viennese physician who was so impressively portrayed by Schiele.
This talk is presented as part of the Winter/Spring 2026 Lecture Series, which features a range of scholars with expertise on the art and design of Austria and Germany.
About the Speaker
Elisabeth Dutz studied art history and law at the University of Vienna. She wrote her doctoral thesis on the sculptor Othmar Schimkowitz (1864–1947), and architectural sculpture in Vienna around 1900. She worked at a bank for many years before moving to the Albertina Museum, where she initially served as Curator of Contemporary Art. She currently serves as the Albertina’s Chief Curator, Graphic Arts Collection, and Vienna Around 1900. Dr. Dutz has curated exhibitions on Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, and Alfred Kubin, among others, and has written numerous essays and books on Austrian art, architecture, and history of the 19th and 20th centuries. She is currently working on the Egon Schiele Archive at the Albertina Museum and the online catalogue raisonné of all drawings by Gustav Klimt, the first part of which will be published in 2026.