I have rarely walked out of an exhibition with so much fervour and so invigorated with I don’t even know what. The exhibition was absolutely fascinating and very well laid out. Going in, I didn’t know much more about Klimt than his famous “This Kiss” and that he had a ‘golden period’, but I have now learnt that there was much more to the man and his art.
His earlier work includes a lot of copper engraving, under the influence of his father who was an engraver. Unbeknown to me, Gustavo Klimt’s brother, Ernst, was also an artist, and they worked together very closely, influencing much of his early work.They were both founding members of the Vienna Secession, and it was said that Ernst fostered most of the friendships between his brother and the other artists, since Gustav was more if a introverted character. Consequently, this lead to a very dark period in Gustav’s life, when his brother Ernst died at a young age.
The part most fascinating to me was how much of a controversial figure Klimt became because of his art. The crowning moment, if you like, was the three panels he and Franz Matsch were commissioned to paint for the University ceiling in Vienna. The commissioned titles were Medicine, Jurisprudence and Theology. (All destroyed by the SS when they retreated in May 1945). Klimt chose to reject the previously unchallenged historicism of the time in his refusal to depict a rational world. It was said in the exhibition that he “transcended historicism” ("supera lo storicismo"), choosing instead flowing and atmospheric symbolism with a strong theme of sorrowful humanity in the cosmic void. This was also an attempt to revive contemporary Austrian Art.
His works caused a great sensation and his reaction to this was so strong that he abandoned the job and returned his payment so far. But of course this was not the end. This sparked public debate about state support for modern art and the Secession.
Klimt's biggest project was the Beethoven Frieze, made for the Fourteenth Secessionist exhibition, painted directly onto the walls of the Secession Building (Wiener Secessionsgebäude). Above the entrance to the building they put the following quote “Der Zeit ihre Kunst. Der Kunst ihre Freiheit.” (To every age its art, to every art its freedom). The quote impressed me a lot when I first read it, and still does.
The rest of the exhibition focused his various narrower subjects.
Landscape
Although he came to landscape painting quite late in his life, almost a fifth of all his works depict landscape. The audio guide was incredibly informative, but not in a boring way. For instance, an expert explained his approach to landscape art, which has a smaller focus that most other artist who take a broader approach. He did not seek to capture detail, but ended up focusing on it (much like the zoom of a camera) because his desire was to capture the suspension of time, focusing on instances.
His Sunflower was also beautiful.
It resembles a woman in a dress in its strange format. This was explained by Klimt’s playing with symbolism- that a flower symbolises woman, and woman symbolises a flower. He felt that flowers were closely connected to the psyche of his subjects. Ludwig Hevesi said this painting portrayed an “ideal link between idealism and romanticism” …. “A fairy in love.”
Mother with Children, 1909-1910
This shows, like many artists of the time, that he reflected the impending crisis that gripped Europe in the lead up to the First World War in his art. He experienced a creative, as well as existential crisis amidst the fractured society.
The picture is not exclusively dramatic though, there is also a feeling of flowing calm in the serenity of the painting, despite its darkness. We are free to speculate whether the figures are dead or simply sleeping.
The final room focused on Klimt’s nudes. His focus lies mostly with the female figure, and often specifically sirens- a typical motif of the Jugendstil / Art nouveau. The connotations the siren can be both positive and negative. The temptress who attracts men but drags those who let themselves be seduced into the depth.
The final piece of the exhibition:
Adam and Eve. The woman dominates the foreground with her “Rubensian Flesh” and the man plays a more supportive role. They are situated in a distant dimension with an unrecognisable background- depicting a sort of earthly Eden. The generous shape of the woman is also worth noting, as Klimt usually uses pretty emancipated models. This makes her seem like a more maternal figure - mother nature, so spring renewal too, combining the themes of love and Eros in the painting.
I hope I have not bored you too much, it was just such a surprisingly good exhibition!!
