Maria Munk

Maria Munk

The unfinished portrait of Maria Munk is a colourful painting by Gustav Klimt. The portrait is the third and final painting the Munk family had commissioned Klimt to create, however was not able to finish to work due to his sudden death.

The painting manifests a classic Austrian woman, with a rounded face, orange lips and rosy cheeks. The woman's eyes are painted downwards, as he rich eyebrows lightly frame her face. The woman's light brown hair is held up in a fashionable hairstyle at the time, covering her ears. The woman's face remains incredibly pale, a classic technique the artist used to illuminate the faces of his portraits.

As the painting is unfinished, it is difficult to make out the body shape of the woman and the areas in which her arms fall. It seems as if the art planned to cover her body in an array of patterns and flowers, while still showcasing her silhouette. The woman's hands seem to be holding the white and light purple branches of flowers in her hands.

The colours throughout Maria Munk incorporate Klimt's mosaic style, while leaning towards the art nouveau scene. At this point in Klimt's career, his pieces had gained an immense amount of success and attention throughout Europe. The artist had transitioned into his own style while paying tribute to his favourite ideas and colours. The painting beautifully showcases Maria and her colourful silhouette standing, as she meets the gaze of the viewer. Her hands are pressed against her own body, blended into the background of the piece, as the viewer questions what the artist was planning to do.

The woman is coloured in an array of bright flowers that illustrate the emotion of happiness within the artist final years. It is interesting to notice that the artist style had transformed into positive pieces that carry an immense number of natural vegetation, such as flowers and blossoms throughout his work. The artist had entered and impressionism the stage where he had painted an immense number of landscape showcasing the beautiful colours of nature. The piece shows the artist using bright coloured flowers, paired with the portrait of the woman to create a beautiful painting.

Bright coloured flowers coloured in yellows, oranges, blues, purples, and strong pinks fill the canvas of the painting and an array of different types of blossoms. When is interesting to note about the painting is that the artist incorporated his mosaic style within the piece. The top left corner is still in the yellow background, and with purple swirls showing a pattern that the artist had never stopped.

Near the bottom of the painting the artist had placed an art nouveau pattern which showcased bright colours of yellow and purple, with different patterns influenced by Greek and Austrian culture at the time. While the painting remains and finished, the colors, patterns, and techniques showcase artist immense knowledge through different styles. The unfinished painting as an abrupt end to the artists work, yet still illuminating his beautiful technique.