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| Gustav Klimt, "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I" (1907). Neue Galerie, New York. |
Through the making
of this painting, Klimt and his model had an affair, and its analysis indicate
elements of this happening. The positioning of the hands shows a possible
maliciousness, of waiting for something to happen. Her face, though neutral, is
powerful. Her dress contrasts from the golden background with the almond-shaped
eyes, a motif with sexual connotations.
As the son of a
gold smith, Gustav Klimt is best known for the gold work he uses in his
paintings. This portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer and its second version mark the
fullest point in the Viennese artist's golden phase. Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer, the model’s
wealthy husband, commissioned this portrait. Years later, the Nazis took the
painting from the family.
After
the repossession of the painting to the Bloch-Bauers, to the
Altmann's family, the painting was sold at a Christie's auction in 2006. This
was a ground-breaking sale, of $135 million, then, the highest price paid at
auction for an artwork. The painting was taken to the Neue Galerie, in New
York, where it is now their "Mona Lisa".
