A study in reading in a multi-generational portrait: an older gentleman holds a book while his granddaughter looks on.

Philipp Wilhelm Ritter von Schoeller: 1845-1916

The following biography appears courtesy of the Dorotheum auction house from a 2021 lot of the artists work:

In 1889 he and his brother took over the business operations of the wholesale firm Schoeller & Co. However, he soon withdrew from the management. From 1891 onwards, he occupied himself with photography and took lessons from Wilhelm J. Burger, among others, setting up a private studio run by Hermann Clemens Kosel. From 1892/93 until 1897/98 he attended the Graphische Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt in Vienna, in the first years concentrating on portrait studies. Because of his poor health he spent much time in the south and used his travels to take photographs. In 1900, he funded a scholarship to enable talented students without means of the Graphische Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt to continue their education.