James Baquet

    When art and artists are being discussed, Austrian symbolist Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) is not the first to come to mind. Yet on one connoisseur’s list of the “100 Greatest Paintings of All Time,” he occupies three of the top 10 spots.

    Because the female body was one of his favorite subjects, Klimt was often accused of producing “pornography,” though his work is seldom seen as such today.

    The first of these (No. 4 on the list) is the 1901 “Beethoven Frieze,” painted for a celebration of the great German composer. It was applied directly on the walls of the exhibit space, meant to remain only during the show. Instead, it was preserved, but was only seen in public again in 1986. It is now in a special room in the Vienna Secession Building, where the original exhibition was held.

    It is large — 2 meters high, 34 meters wide — and tells a story of the search for happiness in a troubled world. After allegorical depictions of suffering, it ends by portraying the achievement of joy through the arts, seen in the image of a couple in a passionate kiss.

    The second (No. 6) is “The Maiden” (1913), composed of six intertwined women (or perhaps one woman in several aspects) depicting themes of love and growth, including the birth of the next generation. This is not, then, the depiction of any particular woman, but an attempt at conveying the very essence of the concept “Woman.” It hangs in the National Gallery in Prague.

    The final top-10 entry by Klimt (No. 8) is perhaps his most popular: 1908’s “The Kiss” (also known as “Lovers”). It was painted between 1907 and 1908, and just a glance shows it comes from his “Golden Phase” — gold is its dominant color.

    In the midst of a perfect square, a man and woman covered in robes lie in a close embrace, as the man kisses the woman on the cheek. Or, perhaps his lips are approaching hers, in which case it is not an actual kiss, but the prelude to one. In any case, it is not a mad, passionate, Hollywood kiss, but a moment of deep intimacy.

    Vocabulary:

    Which word above means:

    1. long narrow decoration on a wall

    2. indicating strong feelings

    3. occupying the main position

    4. a person able to distinguish good art from bad

    5. using one thing to say something about another, symbolic

    6. a young woman

    7. emotional closeness

    8. a type of art that rejects realism

    9. images, films, or writings meant to arouse sexually

    10. twisted or wrapped together