(Vienna 1862–1918) Portrait of a lady with a hat in lost profile, circa 1898, coloured chalk on paper, 27.2 x 10 cm, in a frame produced by Georg Klimt, signed Klimt Georg, chased brass, set with stones to top edge, 37.5 x 18 cm, (K)

A certificate has been produced for this work by Dr Bisanz-Prakken, and it will be included in vol. V of the catalogue raisonné of the drawings of Gustav Klimt in the Albertina.

Compare:
Gustav Klimt, Die Zeichnungen, 1878–1903, vol. I, Verlag Galerie Welz, Salzburg 1980, page 127, no. 393

Provenance: Max Ungethüm - 2 stamps to covering board: Kunsttischlerei Max Ungethüm Wien V/56, Obere Amtshausgasse 27
Melanie Ungethüm
Private Ownership, Lower Austria

This female portrait exhibits a high degree of similarity to a drawing reproduced in Ver Sacrum in 1899 (Issue 5, p. 29).(1) Common to both depictions are the shining face with a distinctive nose in lost profile, the dark hat with light plaid bow decoration and the high, dark collar. The illustrated model is anonymous, as are all other examples in the group of portraits drawn by Klimt around 1897/98. (2)
The narrow vertical format of the work presented here, combined with the detail-like character of the composition, was generally very popular during the formative years of the Secession (c. 1897/98). This formative phase is also indicated by the subtly stylised floral motif of the ornamental frame, which was designed by Georg Klimt, Gustav’s brother. Furthermore, the triangular flower hearts set with beads at the upper edge are reminiscent of the early Secessionist crest emblem with three shields (for painting, sculpture and architecture). Famous paintings, such as “Pallas Athene” (1898) and “Nuda Veritas” (1899), each form an organic unity with their frames executed by Georg Klimt. This miniature artistic synthesis presents itself as an early example of a modern-orientated cooperation between the brothers.

Moreover, this work presents a rare example of the pastel technique that Klimt practiced in the late 1890s, especially in the aforementioned group of female portraits. With great freedom here, he applies his coloured pencils, mainly in blue complemented by red accents: from the subtly outlined profile to the fierce, densely overlapping lines of the clothing, in which the right hand pictorially emerges as a light spot. Typical of the symbolism of the time is the mysterious shimmering backdrop arranged in long parallel lines. Purely through linear means, Klimt achieves richly nuanced colouristic values and evocative light and dark effects.
Marian Bisanz-Prakken

(1) Ver Sacrum 1899, Issue 5, p. 29; Alice Strobl Gustav Klimt - Zeichnungen, Vol. I, Salzburg 1980, No. 393 (location unknown).
(2) Strobl I, No. 386-406