Biography

Born on July 14, 1862 in Baumgarten, Austria, Gustav Klimt is the second of seven children of a poor gold and silver engraver. He went to the University of Plastic Arts in Vienna and discovered his talent as an artist at the age of 14. He graduated at the age of 20 and had been commissioned to create a number of decorative works, applying his training in modernist craftsmanship. He founded the Känstlercompanie (Company of Artists) studio with his brother Ernst, and classmate Franz Matsch. They were successful as mural painters dealing with museums, theaters and other decorative artwork for rich clients. Their company closed down after the death of Ernst and disagreement with Franz Matsch.

Klimt's works often included gold and silver paint, a style he inherited from his father. He preferred to paint murals rather on canvasses and was motivated by Byzantine mosaics, which he found out while exploring Vienna.

He founded Sezession, an Art Nouveau movement, in 1897 aiming to give young, innovative artists an opportunity to get exposure and to rebel against the conventional attitudes of the academic art world. He arranged numerous exhibits and published “Ver Sacrum”, a monthly magazine about the movement and its members. He withdrew from the movement in 1905 after a falling out with some of its members. His famous painting “The Kiss” which he completed between 1907 and 1908 was considered a scandal but earned admiration at the same time. Klimt was known as a womanizer and often used whores as models. A lot of his artworks were viewed as too sensual for the society of early 20 th Century Vienna and even his historical or legendary works showing nude were often condemned as lascivious. Nevertheless, this only served to heighten Klimt's international popularity.

Aside from women, Klimt, often traveled to the suburbs of Vienna and the Italian countryside, drawing inspiration in nature, specifically autumnal backdrop, which depicted the golden shades of his unique decorative style. From the lavishness of the Viennese Bourgeoisie to the legendary, from sensuality to the plain beauty of nature, Klimts artwork always sustained its highly stylized sense. Depth is the most absorbing traits of his artwork, notwithstanding its concentration on the superficial.

Klimt was recognized an honorary member of the Viennese Academy of Fine Arts in 1917. A year later on January 11, he suffered stroke while working in his apartment. He died after a month, on February 6, 1918, due to pneumonia complications.