The Artist

Gustav Klimt

Austrian · 1862 - 1918 · Art Nouveau

Klimt's gold-leafed portraits and figures defined the Vienna Secession and shaped what we now call Art Nouveau. The Kiss and Tree of Life — geometric pattern wrapped around tender embraces — remain among the most reproduced images in modern art. On canvas or acrylic the metallics and ornament hold their authority; they're paintings designed to live with light.