Gustav Klimt: Vienna - Japan 1900

Most people know Gustav Klimt (1862-1918), arguably Austria’smost famous painter, as the artist of ‘The Kiss’ (1907), but his oeuvres offer much more. Klimt was raised in a cultural era informed by classical traditions, but in the 1890s he turned away from the norms of historicism and aesthetical conventions in search of modernity. His transition to Art Nouveau led to the creation of the Vienna Secession, an art movement which in turn helped shape the beginning of Viennese Modernism. Klimt’s depictions of women in lavish gold and decorated motifs were often embedded in an allegory of sexuality and human psyche. Although his rebellious spirit frequently clashed with Viennese society, he was the most celebrated and sought-after portraitist by the local elites. One hundred years after Klimt’s death, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum is hosting Japan’s first comprehensive exhibition of this figurehead of Art Nouveau,with more than 25 paintings on display. For a well-rounded experience, the museum is also displaying Japanese artworks reminiscent of Klimt’s style, as well as a re-creation of the exhibits at Vienna’s Secession Building using elaborate reproductions of the wall paintings.