Schiele met Paul Wengraf, the art critic and dealer, when he joined the army in 1917. Wengraf subsequently became an important collector of Schiele's work. The present picture is one of three portraits of Wengraf executed in 1917 which, according to Gustav Nebehay, was one of the most important years of Schiele's life. The artist usually produced a number of drawings of his subject, one of which would be chosen by the sitter for heightening with colour. Since the present work is the only coloured image, it appears that Wengraf selected it as the best of the three.