How would you interpret Gustav Klimt's artwork "The Kiss?"
I hope my thoughts aren’t too inconsistent..“The Kiss” is currently hanging on the wall to the left of me. I feel so deeply connected to the piece.. yes, it is beautifully designed through the colors and its complexity but it is so much more than that.I feel like we all crave intimacy and security and this painting expresses our deepest desires as humans. There is so much power in two beings holding each other. He clings to her with his undying love. To me, it is the ideal painting of deep romanticism.When I look at it, the painting becomes reality. I become her..I can feel his arms gently wrapped around me. Being held is so important to me because of how much power goes into such a small gesture.. it makes me dream of having the man I love in my arms or even sometimes when my mom still holds me (when I am upset and vulnerable).. even at this age.The ethereal figures together are one, fused and bonded by their perpetual love. The energy between the two is inseparable. While the piece is nothing short of profound, there is sustained peace and comfort in it.
If Gustav Klimt's portrait of Adele Bloch Bauer (The Lady in Gold) is the Mona Lisa of Austria, what is the Mona Lisa of the United States?
The way I see Mona Lisa is very different from general perceptions for this painting. First of all, I don't think Mona Lisa is the best portrait of all time, I don't think it's the best Renaissance portrait, I don't even think it's Leonardo's best painting. I think Mona Lisa is one of the most (if not THE most) over-hyped painting of all time. It got famous not because the artwork itself was exceptionally good (compare to other Renaissance paintings, compare to other Leonardo paintings), it got famous because of the story the mystery the controversy around it. It got famous because 1)it got stolen. 2)it was chosen to be part of mass production of post cards and other decorative posters. 3) there're sensational theories associated to this painting. A lot of people say we don't know who the sitter is, but we do know, we know her name, we know who she was, there's no mystery, she's not Leonardo's self-portrait as a woman, she's not Queen Elizabeth. So if I have to find an American equivalent, I'd say Andy Warhol's Marilyn Diptych. Andy Warhol undoubtedly created this work to make a point, while Leonardo created Mona Lisa as a regular portrait commission, the end result is comparable. The print is more about a statement than the actual art work. It speaks more about this time we're in than the actual artist and the art work itself, in the same way Mona Lisa speaks about our time, our attitude for art, and how mass media plays into our perceptions. And I guess another comparable feature of both artworks is that I equally despise both.
What is the meaning of Gustav Klimt painting "Death and Life"?
here's a good description from All-Art: The young girl, whether in Death and Life or in The Virgin, seems to express the words of Sissy, Elisabeth of Austria: "The thought of death is purifying; it has the same effect as a gardener has, pulling the weeds out of his garden. But this garden always wants to be alone, and it becomes angry when curious people look over its walls. In the same way, I hide my face behind my parasol and my fan so that the thought of death can take effect in me peacefully." In painting his last pyramid-shaped allegories, such as The Virgin or The Bride, Klimt used pure colours only; the kaleidoscopic composition seems to turn on a labyrinthine pivot. There is always a narrative to be told: the young girl becomes a woman; we experience the awakening of her senses, which will lead to the ecstasy of love. The different stages are represented by the same being, multiplied as if in a dream. Dislocated parts of female bodies, in diverse poses and moods, move as if they had been caught by a crazed camera. The pyramid of brightly coloured clothes, the empty shell of a woman's dress beneath it, seems to give birth to the "child" as from a joyful cascading waterfall. The Bride belongs to a still later phase, influenced by Schiele, which was terminated by Klimt's death... The flow of decorative motifs is no less powerful, but more importance is attached to the geometrical organisation of the canvas. The melee of figures seems kept in check by abstract elements. It becomes increasingly difficult to analyse these late works; the fact that they were left unfinished makes it impossible to divine their ultimate goal. While the portraits of women were developing in this manner, a parallel development was taking place in the other branch of Klimt's work, namely his landscapes: the "tapestry" or "mosaic" style was evolving into a style of composition which shows incipient traces of Cubism. Instead of anonymous extracts from nature as a whole, we begin to see landscapes with urban elements, with architecture, with water, vegetation and buildings. As hitherto, mystic pantheism prevails, and human beings remain out of sight.
What are other painters who have similar styles like Klimt?
Klimt had academic training. The roots of his works are in classical painting allegories which elude (with almost total dedication) to the female form.If you look at how he evolved as an artist there are many influences he took from his contemporaries, including early on his use of decorative metal crafting and gilding (his family were goldsmiths). Important to remember-his paintings are not just paintings-they are also art objects.He was an incredible draughtsman and always retained the academic figurative underdrawing qualities of his youth. In his lifetime he produced tens of thousands of drawings.His later work is hugely influenced by the Symbolist painters (which could also include Gauguin and Munch), expressionism and Eastern Exoticism.Fernand Khnopff (below) has the most similar symbolic style, and is also the artist whose influence can be most clearly seen in Klimt's paintings.Khnopff’s paintings also pre-date the stylistic changes made by Klimpt by up to a decade.Fernand KhnopffFranz von StuckFerdinand HodlerEgon Schiele -Klimpt was his mentor an although Schieles forms are more angular and expressive you can see the crossover I think.Edvard Munch paintingsThe Symbolists (Odilon Redon)See also:RodinPre-Raphaelite influences: Sir Frederick Leyton (Klimt would have seen this painting)/ John Everett Millais/ Dante Gabriel RossettiLate 19th Century print influences: Particularly JapaneseEarly 20th Century Erotic Art:Art Nouveau illustrators: Aubrey Beardsley, Franz Wacik, Charles RickettsAustrian Expressionism: Oskar Kokoschka, Egon Schiele
Was Gustav Klimt religious?
Here’s what we know. . .Klimt’s sister Klara had a mental breakdown after succumbing to religious mania when the painter was in his teens.Klimt had a life-altering affair with Adele Bloch-Bauer, the wife of a Viennese banker, and a self-described atheist.Klimt never married but is thought to have fathered 14 children during his lifetime.His erotic art was controversial, condemned by conservatives and the church, destroyed by the Nazis.Klimt was a founder and the first president of the Vienna Secession when it named its magazine Ver Sacrum, Sacred Spring, in reference, arguably, to the naturalistic, erotic sacred.There is every likelihood that he rejected organized religion.
What are some facts about Gustav Klimt for kids?
Gustav Klimt:loved red haired women, and many of his paintings depict them.painted out in the nature, landscapes.went on holidays in Austria with his friend Emile Flöge.still lived at home when he was in his 40s.wore a blue robe when he painted.In his golden period he decorated is painting in gold leaves.One of his most famous paintings is The Kiss which is of a man and woman kissing. In that painting there are many symbols representing femininity and masculinity.used lots of color and detail in his workwas born in Austria-Hungary in 1862
What is a famous painting that depicts motherhood?
there are many famous paintings of mother and child which depict motherhood, as they show the delicate, loving and sensitive manner in which a mother holds her baby, protecting it. Different artists depict motherhood in different ways, some may try to bring about a softer, smoother feel to the painting by using continuous, soft brush strokes or such. when explaining HOW a painting depicts motherhood-- talk about the bond shown between the mother and the child.( or if its a painting with no child, then talk about how the mother may be depicted as being worried about her child, eagerly waiting for the child,etc.... or looking down at her stomach--if shes pregnant, etc...) when explaing WHY a painting depicts motherhood-- it could be to communicate the special bond between the mother and the child, the artist could have choosen this as the theme perhaps as a response to what is happening in his/her surroundings, and choosing to depict it with a painting (van gogh).... there could be many reasons, for this you'll have to think like an artist and ask yourself, WHY does my painting depict motherhood....WHY would u make a painting to depict motherhood?? SOME FAMOUS MOTHER AND CHILD PAINTINGS: PABALO PICASSO'S - Mother and child--- http://s4.hubimg.com/u/1063163_f520.jpg GUSTAV KLIMT- mother and child-- http://www.paintinghere.com/UploadPic/Gustav%20Klimt/big/mother%20and%20child.jpg LEONARDO DA VINCI -- The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne --- http://www.themasterpiececards.com/famous-paintings-reviewed/bid/27197/Famous-Paintings-The-Virgin-and-Child-with-St-Anne VAN GOGH -- mother roulin with her baby ( and many more-google it) -- http://www.oilpaintingbank.com/img/subject/mother-and-child-oil-painting/Vincent-Van-Gogh/Mother-Roulin-with-Her-Baby-V.jpg GOOGLE IT---U'LL FIND MANY MORE PAINTINGS...
Gustav Klimt was Austrian, but was he Jewish?
He was Catholic, but may have had a child by a Jewish woman. Many of his models were Jewish women, for example Adele Bloch Bauer's portrait was renamed by Nazis "Lady in Gold". Many of his patrons who financed his artwork were Jewish, meaning they owned the art which was subsequently stolen and defaced by Nazis on their retreat from Austria. The US Supreme court ruled for families and their heirs who lost his art to sue the government of Austria for the paintings for their return to the rightful owners. Most of them have been returned, leaving Austria virtually Klimt-free.