Inspired by Klimt

A major figure of the Art Nouveau movement, the Austrian Symbolist painter Gustav Klimt is today one of the most expensive painters in the world. Born in 1862, his work earned him major success during his lifetime before his death in 1918. Klimt played a foundational role in the Vienna Secession (meaning 'Separation') movement, organizing several exhibitions throughout the early 20th century that brought together a collective of like-minded artists. Klimt is noted for his murals, sketches, and paintings such as The Kiss (1908) painted in the decade before his death, and Judith and Holofernes (1901) are world-famous. In 1888, thanks to his artistic talents, Klimt received the gold medal of artistic merit from the hands of the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph himself. 

To document Klimt's character: he was a committed artist, a resolute anti-academic (wishing to put an end to the separation between the major and decorative arts) and a lover of women. As his work suggests, Klimt adored the female body from which he drew endless inspiration for his erotic depsictions. He had many love affairs without ever marrying whilst fathering 14 illegitimate children within his life. His work was labeled pornographic by his critics oweing to his style's break from tradition.

Klimt's work appears as allegorically rich in figurative references as it is rich in color and eye-catching gilded tones. To develop his gold leaf technique—synonymous with work of his gold phase, Klimt drew inspiration from Byzantine mosaics, such as those found in the Basilica of Saint Sophia in Istanbul. The use of gold leaf is a major characteristic of his work and is an artistic trait that has been much replicated as other artists follow in his style. Here are some artists such as Derek Gores, Jacqueline Carcagno and Sebastien Arts, who follow in Klimt's footsteps embodying the great master's strong sense of ornate gold and rich color. Go check out these modern artists inspired by the Viennese Secession!