A Kiss for Valentine’s Day
Gustav Klimt, The Kiss, 1907-1908, Österreichische Galerie Belvedere Vienna, Wikimedia Commons
Today is Valentine's Day, and we have a painting to help you get in the mood for love! I bet you have encountered Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss (1907-1908) at some point in your life. The painting is known to people all over the world, but what is the meaning behind it? If you want to know more about this beautiful painting you are in the right place!
Who is Gustav Klimt?
Born in 1862, Gustav Klimt was an Austrian symbolist painter and the leader of the Vienna Secession movement. This movement rejected traditional academic art in favor of a highly ornamental style that aimed to bring together painting, architecture and the decorative arts. Klimt is known for his bold use of color, decorative style, and use of symbols. One of his other famous works is The Tree of Life (1909). Klimt had a profound impact on modern art and especially on the Austrian Art Nouveau.
Gustav Klimt, The Tree of Life, 1909, Museum of Applied Arts Vienna, WikiArt
The Kiss
The first thing that strikes you when looking at the painting is the use of the color gold that maintains its presence throughout the whole painting. Gold often symbolizes wealth and spirituality, but in Klimt’s case it takes a deeper meaning and becomes the symbol of the nature of love. The couple is wealthy when it comes to love itself. Our attention is then drawn to popping colors of green, blue, red and some touches of pink and purple,representing nature itself. There is a colorful bed of flowers at the bottom of the painting and some flower-like decorations on the figures, especially on the woman. The woman is like a flower herself, loved and cherished, and the way the man is holding her creates the sense that she is being taken care of. One sweet detail about the woman is her facial expressions. Her eyes are closed, her face serene, and although there is no definite smile, we can see her blushing which adds to the romance between the figures. While the woman is covered with colors, taking a look at the figure of the man we see some geometric shapes in the colors of black, white, and gray which adds an abstract element to the painting. Observing how he looks, we can see that he is giving a tender kiss to his lover. There is a contradiction between the decoration of each figure, and these elements combined with the pure landscape might lead to some questions or thoughts in the viewer's mind.
An aspect of this painting that intrigues a lot of people is how the figures are intertwined in each other's bodies and nature, and how we can only see the heads and hands of each figure. While facial expressions can be crucial in showing someone we love them, hands also play a big part on the physical and sensual side of affection. By observing their hands we see how they are holding onto each other, like they are never going to let go. Some paintings manage to freeze a fleeting moment in time. Klimt, with this work, definitely manages to do that, making the painting timeless. This painting makes everyone feel something unique and different, but it establishes passion, tenderness and, most importantly, love as starting points for our thoughts.
