The Kiss - Gustav Klimt

This iconic work of art called “The kiss” by Gustav Klimt is one of the most famous paintings in the world and it really fills the room of the Belvedere museum, where it’s placed.

I chose this painting because it really blows me away everytime I see it and because from the moment I saw it in the museum, I was so impressed I almost cried. It has something so magnetic and magical that you can’t stop looking at it.

Klimt was criticised for being too risky and daring when painting the female body and his representation of love, and some people called his paintings pornographic or perverted. Otherwise, “the kiss” was received as pure and innocent, showing a couple expressing their love with a cheek kiss surrounded by nature and bright and shiny colors, such as yellow and gold.

Talking about the materials, style and colours that Klimt used in this painting, it’s important to remark the use of oil and golden leaves. Inspired by a trip he made to Ràvena and its Byzantine mosaics which used a lot of gold, the painter started to paint with this material to give more light and sparkle to his works and enlight its figures. The style is also influenced by the Art nouveau and the contemporary arts and crafts forms.

Finally, to talk about what this painting symbolizes, there are different theories about who the girl being kissed is. Some theories say that she was his companion Emilie Floge, while others believe that she was the model known as “Red Hilda”. There are also different theories about that story that it’s told and about who are this couple. Most of the theories are related to the mythology, given that it’s believed that they could be Apolo and Dafne or Euridice and Orpheus, two couples suffering and punished for and by love.