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Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
LauraJG@deacon.social ("Laura G, Sassy 70’s") wrote:
By Gustav Klimt (1862–1918), Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I (1907), oil, silver and gold on canvas, 140 × 140 cm (55.1 × 55.1 in), Neue Galerie, New York City. #arthistory
From the website: ‘This painting is revolutionary for both its timeless beauty and a provenance story that represents perseverance and justice. In 1938, the portrait was one of five Klimt paintings seized by the Nazis from the Bloch-Bauer's home. For decades, the masterpiece was displayed in Vienna where it was renamed “Woman in Gold” to conceal the sitter's identity. Over the course of decades, surviving heir Maria Altmann fought for the return of her family’s property.
In 2005, a panel hearing before the United States Supreme Court determined that the paintings were to be restituted to the heirs. This was a landmark restitution case. In 2006, Ronald S. Lauder acquired Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I for the Neue Galerie New York, and it has been on permanent view at the museum since, adhering to the wishes of the family.’
Attachments:
- From the website: “Klimt presents Adele Bloch-Bauer in an ambiguous position—it is unclear if she is standing or is seated in an armchair that is covered in sinuous spirals. A golden and highly ornamented halo surrounds her face. Her flushed cheeks and vivid red lips convey the sensuality of the woman behind the portrait. Adele Bloch-Bauer’s hands are clasped together in an unusual fashion to mask a disfigured finger about which she was extremely self-conscious. Adele Bloch-Bauer is bedecked in precious jewelry, including a diamond choker, which had been a wedding present from her husband Ferdinand. (When the Nazis seized the Bloch-Bauer collection, this stunning necklace ended up in the possession of notorious Nazi leader Hermann Göring.) The form-fitting sheath she wears is adorned with all-seeing eye motifs set within golden triangles. The diaphanous cloak that surrounds her is studded with her initials “AB,” raised in low relief. The black and white trim at the lower left edge recalls decorative elements on pieces of furniture from Klimt’s studio that were fabricated by the Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshops). The portrait has been called the greatest in the artist’s “golden style.”’ (remote)
