Shop art print and framed art Life and Death by Gustav Klimt

Life and Death is an oil on canvas by Gustav Klimt, for which he won first prize at the International Exhibition in Rome in 1911. The painting depicts an opposition between life and death. On the left, death is represented by a figure consisting of a skull and skeletal hands on an irregularly shaped, disproportionate body. He is wearing a suit covered with crosses and is holding a battered club. The colours of his clothing are dark: purple and black. With envious eyes, he looks at life, represented by the figures on the right. They are naked and embracing each other, and their faces look happy, even ecstatic. The women's skin is pale, unlike the man's, which is darker. In some places, the bodies seem distorted or incomplete. The background of the painting is in shades of dark blue, khaki and green. It brings out the contrast between the cold colours of death and the warm colours of life. The light seems to come from the right-hand side of the painting, the side of life. This painting measures 180.5 x 200.5 cm and is on display in Vienna at the Leopold Museum in [...]

 

This artwork is a painting from the modern period. It belongs to the art nouveau styles and symbolism styles.

 

« Life and Death » is kept at Leopold Museum, Vienna, Austria.

 

Find the full description of Life and Death by Gustav Klimt on Wikipedia.