Ria Munk

ID: #1821 | TOP 200 | Symbolism | Portraits

Date: 1918
Medium: oil and coal
Location: private collection
Dimensions: 180.7 x 89.9

The portrait by the important Austrian painter Gustav Klimt comes from a series of three portraits commissioned by the Munk family. On it we see the deceased daughter Ria, who committed suicide in December 1911 with a shot to the chest due to unrequited love. Her mother, Aranka Munk, commissioned Klimt to paint Ria on her deathbed. Klimt did not start working on the painting until 1917. Behind the girl is a decorative background, so typical for painters. Inspiration in Eastern art and iconography is also evident. After the artist's death in 1918, the painting became the property of Aranka Munková, who only displayed it in her villa until 1941, when it was confiscated by the Nazis. The painting was seized by the collector and dealer William Gurlitta, and only in 2009 was it returned to the heirs of Aranka Munková in restitution. The painting was sold for 25 million dollars.

Klimt painted picture Ria Munk in 1918. Prevailing color of this fine art print is vivid and its shape is tall. Original size is 180.7 x 89.9. This art piece is located in a private collection This image is printed on demand - you can choose material, size and finishing.

Gustav Klimt (1862-1918). As a painter, Klimt represents the best period of Vienna – a time when the works of Sigmund Freud or Mahler were developing, and Vienna was at the very least the Central European centre of culture and education. Klimt’s work combines symbolism and Byzantine features that create the undertone of his Art Nouveau style. Klimt’s images have a special, even anxious, atmosphere that often shows the Freudian idea of ​​erotica in any human movement and action. Klimt paints two-dimensionally, with intense colour while at the same time very gently and with refined dignity. Among Klimt’s famous works are the Water Snakes - two women with stylized, interwoven bodies that evoke the surreal world of fantasy and sensuality. Another masterpiece is Danae, a work inspired by Greek mythology, depicting a girl seized by Zeus, who was turned into a golden rain (Danae later gave birth to Perseus). His paintings often aroused passions and public protests, not only for their content but also for the innovative painting methods - eg. The Girlfriends, an image of two women at a romantic meeting.