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Gustav Klimt

1862-1918 Austria/Symbolist

 

Brief Biography-Gustav Klimt was born in Vienna, the son of a goldsmith. He studied at the Vienna School of Applied Arts with his brother Ernst under the artist Ferdinand Laufberger from 1876 to 1883. Then, with a friend Franz Matsch, the three were commissioned to do murals in the Burgtheater and the Kunsthistorisches Museum, for which Gustav won a Gold Cross of Merit.
In 1897, when he was a member of the conservative Viennese Artist’s Association, he and some colleagues left and formed a group whose work departed from the norm. As a result, they got the name The Secession. During this period, Gustav worked on a commission for Vienna University with the help of Franz Matsch. However, the City Council was unhappy with the works seen as pornographic by many critics; after that, he ceased doing public works.
He became successful in doing portraiture for the Viennese nobility of the day. His portraits were mainly of ladies; however, he never married. His primary relationship was with his sister-in-law Emile Flöge, which lasted for many years. In 1905, the Secession group broke up due to differing tastes; Gustav then applied himself to landscapes and portraiture. One of his major works was the mosaic frieze in the dining hall of the Stoclet Palace in Brussels. He died of a stroke in Vienna in 1918. The younger artis Egon Schiele was highly influenced by Klimt.

 

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Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve

Adele B Bauer

Adele Bloch-Bauer

Beech Forest

Beech Forest

Death and Life

Death and Life

Fritza Riedler

Fritza Riedler#

Goldfish

Goldfish

Garden Path

Garden Path with Chickens

Hope One

Hope One

Hope Two

Hope Two

Lady with Hat

Lady with Hat and Feathered Boa

Mada Primavesi

Mada Primavesi

Music

Music

Music One

Music One

Veritas

Veritas

Nymphs-Silver Fish

Nymphs-Silver Fish

Palas Athene

Palas Athene

Portrait of a Lady

Portrait of a Lady

Schloss Kammer

Schloss Kammer on the Attersee

Schubert

Schubert at the Piano

The Bride

The Bride

The Dancer

The Dancer

The Girl Friends

The Girl Friends

The Stoclet Frieze

The Stoclet Frieze

The Three Ages

The Three Ages of Women

The Tree of Life

The Tree of Life

The Virgin

The Virgin

Water Serpents One

Water Serpents One

Water Serpents Two

Water Serpents Two

Emilie Floge

Emilie Floge

Frieze Detail

Beethoven Frieze Detail

The Kiss

The Kiss

Beethoven Frieze

Hostile Powers

M Wittgenstein

Margaret Stonebourough Wittgenstein

Danae

Danae

Judith

Judith

The Tree of Life

The Tree of Life Stoclet Frieze