Kokoschka proposed to Alma Mahler within twenty-four hours of meeting her in 1912[7]. When she later had an abortion, he pocketed a bloodied cotton pad from the procedure, saying it was his only child and always would be. He painted The Bride of the Wind (1913-14) as a double portrait of the two of them, then sold it to buy his own horse before volunteering for the First World War.
Key facts
Biography
He was born in 1886[7] in Pochlarn, Austria. He was shot through the head in Ukraine and bayoneted in the chest in Russia. He survived both.
After the war, he commissioned a Munich dollmaker named Hermine Moos to create a life-size replica of Alma, sending detailed instructions about the feel of her skin and the weight of her body. Moos covered the figure in feathers instead. Kokoschka eventually staged a public execution: he decapitated the doll and smashed a bottle of wine over its head on his lawn. The police arrived the next morning, thinking he had murdered a woman.
The Nazis declared him a degenerate artist. He fled Czechoslovakia for London after the Munich Agreement and became a British citizen in 1947[7]. His Expressionist portraits are among the most psychologically penetrating of the twentieth century: raw, agitated surfaces that seem to expose the sitter's interior state. He lived to ninety-four.
Timeline
- 1886Born in Pochlarn, Austria, the second child of a goldsmith. The family moved to Vienna after his father went bankrupt.
- 1908At 22, published "Die traumenden Knaben" (The Dreaming Boys) in Vienna, a landmark illustrated book that marked an early milestone of Expressionism.
- 1910At 24, connected with Expressionist circles in Berlin through Herwarth Walden, who reproduced his drawings in the influential journal Der Sturm.
- 1915At 29, was seriously wounded serving as a volunteer in the Austrian army on the Eastern Front during the First World War.
- 1919At 33, appointed professor at the Dresden Academy of Art, where he taught until 1923 before embarking on a decade of painting journeys across Europe and North Africa.
- 1938At 52, fled Prague for London as the Nazis advanced. His work had been branded "degenerate" and he remained in exile in Britain throughout the war.
- 1953At 67, founded his International Summer Academy in Salzburg (the "School of Vision") and settled in Villeneuve on Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
- 1980Died in Montreux, Switzerland, at 93, eight days before his 94th birthday, from complications after contracting influenza.
Notable Works
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Where to See Oskar Kokoschka
13 museums worldwide.
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52 works
National Gallery of Art
Washington, D.C., United States
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12 works
Neue Nationalgalerie
Neue Nationalgalerie, Germany
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7 works
Tate
Tate Britain, United Kingdom
Related Artists
Frequently Asked Questions
How did oskar kokoschka die?
Oskar Kokoschka died in 1980[7] at the age of 94.Oskar kokoschka art movement?
Oskar Kokoschka was an Expressionist. His early Expressionist play, Murderer, Hope of Women, caused scandal in Vienna.What is oskar kokoschka known for?
Oskar Kokoschka is known as a painter, printmaker, and dramatist. While still a student, he painted fans and postcards.What is Oskar Kokoschka's most famous work?
It is difficult to single out one definitive "most famous" work by Oskar Kokoschka, as his notability rests on his achievements in expressionist drama, portraiture, and drawing, as well as painting. His early portraits, from about 1909[7] to 1914, are noted for their psychological intensity. Kokoschka attempted to capture the sitter's "aura" through facial expression, hand gestures, and expressive paintwork, sometimes scratching the surface with his fingernails. One of his best-known paintings is *The Bride of the Wind* (Die Windsbraut), also known as *The Tempest*, completed in 1914. It is a double portrait of Kokoschka and Alma Mahler, his lover at the time. Another painting, *Knight Errant* (1915), is a self-portrait showing the artist as a knight in armour. The painting includes figures representing Mahler and a bird-man resembling the artist. Later, in 1937, he painted *Portrait of a 'Degenerate Artist'*, a self-portrait that refers to the Nazi suppression of modern art. Kokoschka's poster *Christ Helping the Starving Children* was displayed in the London Underground during the winter of 1940.What should I know about Oskar Kokoschka's prints?
Oskar Kokoschka (1886[7]-1980[7]) was an Austrian[7] artist known as a painter, printmaker, and dramatist. He created over 560 prints, around a third of which were produced in the 1910s and 1920s. Kokoschka's early work was influenced by the Wiener Werkstätte; they published his illustrated fairy tale *Die träumenden Knaben* (The Dreaming Boys) in 1908[7]. However, he turned away from decorative styles, moving towards a more expressive approach, particularly in his portraits and figurative works. From 1910, Kokoschka was in contact with Expressionist circles in Berlin, and Herwarth Walden reproduced his drawings and texts in the journal *Der Sturm*. His prints are mostly lithographic or photolithographic portraits and book illustrations. Like his drawings, they often display a nervous, electrically charged style. Paul Cassirer supported Kokoschka from 1916 to 1931, and Cassirer's gallery published many of his prints.What style or movement did Oskar Kokoschka belong to?
Oskar Kokoschka is associated with Expressionism[7]. Born in Austria, he moved within avant-garde circles in Vienna and Berlin early in his career. His early play, *Murderer, Hope of Women*, caused scandal in Vienna in 1909[7]. Kokoschka's portraits aimed to capture the sitter's inner nature. His expressionistic portraits were called "black portraits". He sought to recreate what would survive in the memory, using his own pictorial language. His work from this period has been compared to that of Van Gogh. From 1910, Kokoschka was in contact with Berlin Expressionist circles and contributed to Herwarth Walden's journal *Der Sturm*. His early dramas are considered among the first examples of Expressionist theatre. Later, the Nazis condemned Kokoschka's art as "degenerate". He fled Austria in 1934, living in Prague and London before settling in Switzerland.What techniques or materials did Oskar Kokoschka use?
Oskar Kokoschka experimented with various media throughout his career. Early on, around 1906[7], he produced a small number of works in woodcut, a medium favoured by one of his teachers. He also made drawings in pen and ink, sometimes on postcards. As a student in Vienna, Kokoschka painted fans and postcards. One early issue of *Kneipzeitung* used paper transfers duplicated from alcohol stencils, with illustrators drawing directly on the stencils. Later, Kokoschka became known for oil paintings, especially portraits. His portraits often feature agitated brushwork and strong colours to convey emotion. One self-portrait, *Portrait of a ‘Degenerate Artist’* (1937), uses many colour tones to outline the artist's face, conveying anxiety and anger. Some critics considered him an Impressionist due to his style with oil paint. In later life, Kokoschka also completed many drawings and graphic works.What was Oskar Kokoschka known for?
Oskar Kokoschka (1886[7]-1980[7]) was an Austrian[7] artist known for his Expressionist portraits and dramas. Early in his career, the Wiener Werkstätte published his illustrated fairy tale *Die träumenden Knaben* (The Dreaming Boys) in 1908[7]. He was associated with the Vienna Kunstschau, where his works caused controversy; and with the Berlin-based journal *Der Sturm*. Kokoschka's early portraits, inspired by Vincent van Gogh, were considered violent. He sought to capture the true nature of a person, recreating what would survive in memory. Some critics referred to him as the "Freud of painting". His 1909 play, *Murderer, Hope of Women*, also generated negative reactions. During World War I, Kokoschka volunteered for the Austrian army and was seriously wounded in 1915. From 1917 to 1923, he taught at the art academy in Dresden. Labelled a "degenerate" artist by the Nazis, Kokoschka fled from Austria in 1934, living in Prague and London before spending his final years in Switzerland. He produced over 560 prints, mainly lithographic portraits and book illustrations, characterised by a nervous style.When did Oskar Kokoschka live and work?
Oskar Kokoschka was born in Pöchlarn, Austria-Hungary, on 1 March 1886[7]. He died in Montreux, Switzerland, on 22 February 1980[7]. Kokoschka's early career was based in Vienna. He studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule (1904[7] or 1905) and worked for the Wiener Werkstätte. By 1910, he was dividing his time between Berlin and Vienna, concentrating on portraiture. He volunteered for the Austrian[7] army in 1915, during World War I, and was seriously wounded. From 1917, Kokoschka lived in Dresden, teaching at the Akademie until 1923. He then travelled around Europe and North Africa during the later 1920s. As the Nazis rose to power, Kokoschka moved to Prague in 1935, gaining Czechoslovak citizenship. In 1938, he fled to London, becoming a British national in 1947. From 1953 until his death, Kokoschka resided in Villeneuve, Switzerland, where he taught at the Internationale Sommer Akademie für bildende Kunst.Where can I see Oskar Kokoschka's work?
Oskar Kokoschka (1886[7]-1980[7]) was an Austrian[7] artist who worked across Europe. His work can be found in numerous collections. In 1937[7], the Nazis condemned Kokoschka's art as 'degenerate' and removed it from public display in Germany. He fled to England in 1938, becoming a British national in 1947. He spent his final years in Switzerland. Major exhibitions of Kokoschka's work have been held at the Kunsthaus Zurich (1927), the Arts Club of Chicago (1941), and the Tate Gallery in London (1962). A large show of 682 works was mounted at the Künstlerhaus in Vienna in 1958. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York has also held Kokoschka exhibitions. His 1915 painting *Knight Errant* is in the Guggenheim collection. The Österreichische Galerie Belvedere in Vienna holds his 1963 painting *Herodotus*.Where did oskar kokoschka live?
Oskar Kokoschka lived in Vienna during his youth. Later, after the Munich Agreement, he fled Czechoslovakia for London and became a British citizen in 1947[7].
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Oskar Kokoschka.
- [1] museum Toledo Museum of Art Used for: museum holdings.
- [2] museum Courtauld Gallery Used for: museum holdings.
- [3] museum Buffalo AKG Art Museum Used for: museum holdings.
- [4] museum Hungarian National Gallery Used for: museum holdings.
- [5] museum Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Used for: museum holdings.
- [6] museum National Galleries Scotland Used for: museum holdings.
- [7] wikipedia Wikipedia: Oskar Kokoschka Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [8] book Starr Figura, German Expressionism: The Graphic Impulse Used for: biography, museum holdings, stylistic analysis.
- [9] book guggenheim-guhe00solo Used for: biography, museum holdings, stylistic analysis.
- [10] book Husslein-Arco, Agnes, editor; Koja, Stephan, editor; Law, Rebecca (Translator), translator; McInnes, Robert (Translator), translator; Somers, Nick, translator; Monet, Claude, 1840-1926. Paintings. Selections; Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, h Used for: biography, museum holdings.
- [11] book Penelope J.E. Davies, Walter B. Denny, Frima Fox Hofrichter, Joseph Jacobs, Ann S. Roberts, David L. Simon, Janson's History of Art_ The Western Tradition (8th Edition) Used for: stylistic analysis.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-05-24. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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