Austrian painter Richard Gersti (1883-1908) was born before him time. He came from an affluent family who could afford hiring private tutors for him when his stints at school resulted in “disciplinary difficulties”. When he was 15 he was accepted into the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. He found the the art of the Vienna Secession to be pretentious and refused to paint in that style. He left school but by 1906 had his own studio, after having abandoned formal instruction and having shared studio space with Viktor Hammer.
He was very attracted to musical people and befriended the Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg, spending summer vacations with his family. He became very close to Schoenberg’s wife, Mathilde, and soon had begun an affair with her. In 1908 she left her husband and children to spend time with Gersti in Vienna. Schoenberg convinced his wife to rejoin him, leaving Gersti in shambles. He was heartbroken and once again alone and distraught.
On November 4, 1908, he spent the evening burning all sorts of documents and correspondence that proved his existence. He then proceeded to hang himself in front of a mirror and disemboweled himself to assure his death. Gersti’s death made such an impression on Schoenberg that he composed a work called Expectation regarding these events.
The work that survived the fire was stored after his death but in 1930 his brother showed his work to an art dealer who presented his work in an art show, something that had never happened in his lifetime. His work once again went into hiding during Austria’s Nazi invasion and didn’t resurface until after war. Sixty-six paintings and 8 drawings survived.
To see more of Richard Gersti’s work click here.
