The Golden Period

In his most famous years, Klimt pressed real gold leaf straight onto the canvas. To the Academy this was scandal — gold belonged on church icons and picture frames, not in serious painting.

The Kiss (1907-08) is the peak. Two lovers kneel, wrapped in a shimmering blanket of gold and geometric pattern. It looks less like a portrait than a precious object you could hold.

Look closely and you see Klimt's signature trick. The faces and bodies are painted with soft, lifelike realism — but the clothes and backgrounds melt into flat, abstract pattern.

The result is a constant push and pull between flesh and ornament, real and decorative. That tension is the whole point of his style.