He came from a family of farmers, grew up near
Maishofen and originally wanted to be a priest. After a meeting with
Albert Paris Gütersloh while he was attending the Gymnasium in
Bolzano, however, he became interested in painting. From 1904 to 1906, he attended a private art school operated by
Robert Scheffer in Vienna, then transferred to the
Academy of Fine Arts where he studied with
Alois Delug and
Christian Griepenkerl. From 1909 to 1912, he travelled to
Ticino, Northern Italy and Berlin and exhibited widely. In 1913, he married Ida Andersen, the sister of his friend Robin. Because of World War I, he moved back to Maishofen in 1915. Nevertheless, he was forced to do military service from 1916 to 1918 with the
k.u.k.-Infanterieregiment Nr. 59; although he served unarmed, due to "unsuitability". After July 1917, he was stationed at the
Heeresgeschichtliches Museum "for special purposes", where he helped organize war art exhibitions with his old friend Schiele.
The post-war period After the war he lived in
Salzburg where, with
Felix Albrecht Harta and others, he founded another radical art group, "". During this period, his second marriage failed and he lived with his mistress. In 1926 he was offered a professorship at the Academy, but did not accept. He returned to Vienna in 1927, but continued to travel, especially in Italy. Three years later, he had a stomach hemorrhage and died following surgery. He was buried in Maishofen with a grave memorial designed by
Clemens Holzmeister. A street in Salzburg is named after him and the
State of Salzburg has awarded an "" for art since 1972. ==Selected paintings==