Inventory Number KLG134
Size 18" h x 18" w
Material Collotype
Period Secessionist
Country of Origin Austria
Year Made 1931
Gustav Klimt An Aftermath
Vienna, 1931
Max Eisler, Editor
Austrian State Printing Office (Österreichischer Staatsdruckerei), Printer
30 color collotypes
150 copies in English, thereof 20 copies (Nos. I-XX) as a gala edition bound in gilt leather
Gustav Klimt An Aftermath appeared as a final flowering of the collotype portfolio. According to Eisler, the portfolio was intended to complete Das Werk Gustav Klimts, yet it stands as an independent creation. The inclusion of unfinished paintings (Adam and Eve; Bridal Progress) as well as previously unpublished works gives the portfolio unique value.
In his introductory notes, Eisler traces Klimt's career, evincing a decidedly ambivalent attitude towards the artist. By stressing the decorative qualities of Klimt's paintings, Eisler betrays a bias conditioned by the proliferation of Modernist styles after Klimt's death. Yet the stunning collotype of Hygieia as well as sections of the Stoclet Frieze remind present-day viewers of Klimt’s contribution to the development of Modernism in the twentieth century. These works reveal Klimt's unique ability to combine naturalistic representation with abstract patterning in a manner unparalleled by any other artist of his time, or since.
