*This site is is best viewed on a PC or laptop.
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. |
|
Click an Image to Enlarge
Adam and Eve

Adele B Bauer

Beech Forest

Death and Life

Fritza Riedler

Goldfish

Garden Path

Hope One

Hope Two

Lady with Hat

Mada Primavesi

Music

Music One

Veritas

Nymphs-Silver Fish

Palas Athene

Portrait of a Lady

Schloss Kammer

Schubert

The Bride

The Dancer

The Girl Friends

The Stoclet Frieze

The Three Ages

The Tree of Life

The Virgin

Water Serpents One

Water Serpents Two

Emilie Floge

Frieze Detail

The Kiss

Beethoven Frieze

M Wittgenstein

Danae

Judith

The Tree of Life
