Analysis And Review Of The Portrait Of Adele Bloch-Bauer By Gustav Klimt

“Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer” is a painting by Gustav Klimt. Gustav Klimt was an Austrian painter that lived in the late 18th century and early 19th century. He was proficient in the symbolism style, a style that displayed the imagination and dreams metaphorically that served not to portray what it was literally, but represented instead an idea. He painted mainly murals, portraits and symbolist works and his art centred primarily around the female form.

This work portrays Adele Bloch-Bauer, a woman Klimt was close to in his life. It was commissioned by Bloch-Bauer’s husband as an anniversary gift. The work was created between 1904 and 1907. It was part of Klimt’s Golden Phase, where he utilized a lot of gold leaf and, as the name suggests, the colour palette was made of mainly gold shades. It was from Golden Phase paintings like these that Klimt was able to achieve critical acclaim. The surrealism in this style is consistent in many of his Golden Phase paintings, where the main focus of the work is a woman emphasized and elevated using gold and silver metallic hues.

This painting is a full-length portrait of a woman standing upright with her hands clasped wearing a gown. In the foreground is the woman and the background is composed of mainly gold patterns, with the exception of a green section near the bottom. However, it is fairly difficult to distinguish between the foreground and background because of the tonal and textural similarities between the gown and the background. The work is very abstract because of the triangular shape the gown takes on, the bright brassy colours and the flat-looking patterns that the gown and background have. The shape of the canvas is a square (138 cm x 138 cm) and it is a modern work.

The composition of this work is very sophisticated and follows many composition rules and ratios. For example, the woman is located two thirds to the left, therefore following the rule of thirds. The rule of triangles is present between the face and elbows of the woman, as well as in the shape of the gown. The rule of triangles helps a piece look more grounded and strong. This emphasizes power in the woman, thus suggesting her character. Negative space is utilized in the green strip on the bottom. The absence of pattern in this strip, along with the fact that it is a cool tone as opposed to a warm tone like the rest of the piece, shifts our perception of the frame upwards, therefore positioning the jewellery on the woman’s arm in the middle of the the frame vertically. This emphasizes the woman’s status, again adding to the power in her composition.

Also, there is heavy simplification in the woman’s gown. The artist omits the actual dimension and structure of the gown and chooses to make it look two dimensional in order to draw attention to the woman’s body, the only three dimensional element in the work. This work utilizes patterns very effectively. Closer to the sides, the pattern in more repetitive and bland, whereas closer to the woman, the patterns become more sporadic with each different type of pattern taking up less of the canvas. This draws our attention towards the woman, because that section has less unity and more contrast compared to the rest of the background. In terms of colour, the work is composed of mainly metallic tones. However, certain blacks, reds and dark blues are interwoven in the patterns. The darks (black and blue) are used mainly to outline the woman’s silhouette beneath her cape. This creates a slight contrast between the cape and silhouette, therefore allowing our eyes to discern between the two. The red is used to create a balance with the green on the bottom of the work. It is also used to bring out the pinker hues in the woman’s skin tone. The pink tones make her greyish skin contrast against the silvery elements in the patterns around the face.

The lines used in this piece are mostly curved and direct our attention upwards towards the woman’s face. The leading lines in the edges of her gown, her arms and her silhouette all point at her head. These principles and elements of design are used to portray the woman as powerful and feminine. For example, the rule of triangles makes the woman look grounded with a base. The negative space changes the frame so that her wealth and status are on display. The curving lines suggest femininity, but the fact that they lead upwards suggests authority and control. However, Bloch-Bauer’s expression and body language seems soft and vulnerable. This adds to the feminine aspect of the painting and balances with the strength and boldness. The metallic colour palette used is very bright and eye-catching. The artist’s intention was to focus our attention towards the woman using principles and elements of design, such as pattern, unity, contrast and colour, and then use composition elements to emphasize her strength, such as the rule of triangles and negative space. The work evokes elegance and beauty via the archetypal “strong female” expressed.

Referencing the style of symbolism previously mentioned, Klimt intended to elevate Bloch-Bauer to a symbolic and almost spiritual level, by removing almost all elements that seem realistic or even have a semblance to things that exist in reality. Klimt’s relationship with Bloch-Bauer is complicated and it is still debated whether or not they were in a relationship prior to her marriage. Therefore, given the context, Klimt likely painted Bloch-Bauer in this manner because of his personal feelings towards her.

I like this painting because of the bold and eclectic patterns, as well as the vulnerable positioning of the woman in the piece. However, I don’t like how much gold and silver there is in this piece. I think that this amount of metallics takes away from the artistry in the woman’s body and distracts from it. I think that the main reason this work is so famous is because of the fascinating story that surrounds it. After the death of Bloch-Bauer in 1925, Nazis stole the work in 1941. It was not returned to the family until 2006 after a long legal battle. I think that this story adds to the piece although it has nothing to do with the work itself. Overall, the artist’s intentions were well communicated through the principles and elements of design and composition and that the story of the painting allows it to be of interest of more people, therefore allowing the work itself to be appreciated by a wider audience.