Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) was an Austrian symbolist painter, best known for his profound influence on the Vienna Secession movement. Klimt’s work is distinguished by the elegant gold or colored decoration, often phallic in shape, that conceals the more erotic positions of the drawings upon which many of his paintings are based. This, along with his thematic use of symbolism, makes his art recognizable and powerful. Among his most famous works are “The Kiss” and “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I.” Klimt's art is marked by a frank eroticism, which was controversial during his time but has since been celebrated for its beauty and boldness.