Schanz, who was actually trained as a carpenter, studied at the Karlsruhe Academy of Fine Arts and belonged to the circle of the Karlsruhe School, which would later become known as the New Figuration and which also included renowned artists such as Horst Antes, Hans Baschang and Walter Stöhrer. In the course of the 1960s, these figures by Schanz will dissolve into complete abstraction, a development already indicated by the untitled work created in 1962. Here, the vagabond handwriting is striking, mindlessly painting over previous layers of color without becoming impasto in its application. Distantly, one can make out eyes in the blue above the center; the reddish brushstroke set into the oval could then represent a mouth - that would not be far-fetched, since Schanz was weighing the possibilities of abstract head formations at this time.