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Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt
By Riley Barta
By Riley Barta
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian painter during the late 1800s to early 1900s. Throughout his life, he created more than 200 paintings and opened a school of art. One of his most known paintings, The Kiss, shows his unique style of symbolism. His works are a great example of the symbolism movement.
Klimt was born on July 14, 1862, in Vienna, Austria. His youth was surrounded by the arts with his father being a gold engraver, and his mother being musically talented. He was raised in relative poverty and, at 14, got a full-ride scholarship to the Vienna School of Arts and Crafts. During the time that Klimt joined the art world, academicism was at an all-time high. Academicism, in short, is a rigid form of art that requires artists to meet exact, precise standards. (For more information, check out the Oct. issue of The Scroll where I cover academicism in depth). He studied these methods and focused on architectural painting. After receiving dozens of commissions throughout his time at school, he opened a studio with his younger brother and a close friend. The three called themselves the Company of Artists and decided to only create art that was in style at the time. All personal preference was set aside, and they fully embraced academicism. Luckily, this strategy was a massive success and the trio received numerous, high-paying commissions. According to Biography, a history website, “Their most notable works during this time were the mural at the Vienna Burgtheater and the ceiling above the staircase at the Kunsthistorisches Museum.” Their success led them to join the Vienna Künstlerhaus Genossenschaft (rough translation: Vienna Artists’ Association). The Künstlerhaus was rigid and controlled most of the art exhibits in the area. Though Klimt had been welcomed into the traditional and elite artist sphere, he soon began the path to what most people recognize as Klimt art.
Poster made by Gustav Klimt advertising the Vienna Secession (peak the depiction of Pallas Athena). Image creds to PubHist.
In 1892, Klimt’s brother and father passed away. Klimt’s art changed drastically during this time. The naturalist styles he had learned quickly gave way to more personal expression. He relied heavily on symbolism and transformed what he had been taught into an entirely new form of art. During his quest for artistic freedom, the Company of Artists had been struggling to stay successful. Eventually, Klimt resigned from the Vienna Künstlerhaus Genossenschaft to create a new art society. The Vienna Secession, led by Klimt, was a group of artists rebelling against the styles of academicism. According to the National Gallery of Victoria, “The Vienna Secession was not characterized by one single style but was linked closely with Jugendstil – literally 'youth style'.” Interestingly, the Vienna Secession grew at the same time the Art Nouveau movement grew. Art Nouveau is an art movement that is characterized by the use of natural scenes. Typically, paintings following Art Nouveau will be more flowy and loose compared to academic paintings. Klimt made the group’s symbol Pallas Athena (no one can escape the Greeks). The Vienna Secession group gained massive attention, and the art dynamics of Austria began to shift. Klimt’s legacy was beginning to mold more into what people know him for today.
Klimt was working on a series of murals for the University of Vienna in 1900. The three pieces were called Philosophy, Medicine, and Jurisprudence. They shocked the Austrian art world with their depiction of nude bodies and dark symbolism. These murals ultimately sparked the Klimt controversies. They embarrassed the University of Vienna and were banned from the school; however, a now inflamed Klimt was beginning to reach his peak of success. He began his “Golden Phase” in the early 1900s. His paintings were two-dimensional and had gold leaves and shapes that looked like mosaics. They were heavily influenced by Byzantine art. His most famous paintings were made at this time (The Kiss, Lady with a Fan, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I). Almost all of his paintings after and during the Golden Phase portray women, and his art was seen as scandalous and symbolic. The Kiss, Klimt’s most famous painting, summarizes his Golden Phase beautifully. The gold, the mosaic-like pattern of the shapes, and the emotion that is felt through the paint, all of those are employed in his artwork constantly.
Colorized, AI reproductions of Philosophy, Medicine, and Jurisprudence. Image creds to Gustav Klimt and Google AI
Unfortunately, many of Klimt’s paintings were destroyed during World War II. The three murals mentioned earlier were stolen and burned during the Nazi occupation. For a while, the only images left of the paintings were black and white photos; however, advancements in AI have made it possible to ‘resurrect’ the lost art. According to Vienna Now-Forever, the main Vienna tourism website, “After almost four years of work, the time had come: Klimt's Faculty Paintings were back to their original technicolor best, in a spectacular reconstruction showing just how stellar the art of Viennese modernism was.” Those paintings can be remembered, but sadly many have been lost forever. The fire that burned the three murals also burned several other Klimt pieces.
Gustav Klimt was an influential artist due to his pioneering work in the Art Nouveau movement. His work brought about major changes in the art world. The introduction of Klimt art brought about the ending of academicism and thus more unique art styles.
Sources:
Sources:
Academicism- prior Scroll article
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