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Gustav Klimt who was an Austrian Symbolist painter was one of the most important artists of Art Nouveau. In his days his work was like a decleration of war to the classic ideal. Though most of his work was called pornographic, he was celebrated of the Viennese society. Klimt joined the

"Wiener Sezession", which was a contigent of artist who protested the classic ideal and theory, willing to bring the best international artwork to Vienna. At this time the rebellion against censorship of artwork was not only an important advancement for the art scene, it also showed an openness to sexuality and thematised the aspiration and fear of his time. The age of Industrialisation had an impact on economy and society and new Issues appeared. A new era began, so Klimt symbolized the questions, desire and fear.

Though the leitmotif of Klimt's work was mainly about sexuality and the female body, another important fact is that beauty and vitality of his paintings were in contradistinction to death. You can see below one of his paintings:"The Tree of Life". As it's name says, it stands for Life itself; reaching for Heaven and linking to "Mothers Erath". The tree stands for life, death and resurrection. It is a symbol found in many cultures.

The Tree of Life

Gustav Klimt

Who inspired Klimt? He was intensely interested in Viennas elegant prints and found organic forms through nature. His artwork was influenced by the Byzantine mosaics of the St. Vitale church in Ravenna which he visited. As shown in the example below, "The Tree of Life" ornaments and the use of gold reminds of the Peacock mosaic. The Peacock stands for paradise and resurraction, which a similarity to "The Tree of Life" painting. Inspired by the Byzantine images, Klimt addapted their style contempory in his time.

Byzantine Mosaics

Also other cultures inspired Klimt, like the egyptian culture. The "horus eye" which stands for eternity. It can be found in the branches of the Tree.

How does Gustav Klimt's work takes influence nowadays? The interwine of a classic and modern style, meaning the combination of realistic faces surrounded by two dimensionality, is timeless. A spanish photographer called Moises González reproduced Klimt's golden phase for the magazine "Ae". The image structure, elements and the context stays the same. Moises González takes the Art Nouveau into modern times.