Judith II
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| Judith II (Salome) |
|---|
| Gustav Klimt , 1909 |
| Oil on canvas |
| 178 × 46 cm |
| Galleria Internazionale d'Arte Moderna in the Palazzo Ca 'Pesaro , Venice |
Judith II (Salome) is an oil painting by the Austrian painter Gustav Klimt (1862–1918), created in 1909. It belongs to the artist's golden period and shows either the biblical person Judith with the severed head of Holofernes or the historical figure of Salome , daughter of Herodias , with the head of John the Baptist .
Emergence
For his painting Judith I , Klimt had a sign specially made for the frame with the inscription “Judith and Holofernes”, as it had also been interpreted as a representation of Princess Salome. His second painting Judith II is a game with this double meaning and the typology of the “man-murdering lovers”.
As soon as Klimt liked a pose of one of the models, he sketched it. Most of his large paintings were prepared through a variety of pencil studies and sketches. He played through many different variants of a position in order to finally find the optimal one for the screen version. There was definitely a discrepancy between the sketch and the painting, for example here: The study for the painting Judith II is carried by fiery excitement, while the later painting almost soberly depicts the woman whose hand holds the man's head. The study, the depiction of a flamenco dancer who seems to step out of the sheet of paper in rapid movements, shows a contrast between naked skin and black dress, decorated with red ruffles, which is typical for Klimt.
The painting, owned by the City of Venice, is in the Ca 'Pesaro palace .
Trivia
In 2014 the Austrian Mint issued 50 euro gold coins dedicated to the painting.
Venice's mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, announced in 2015 the intention to auction the painting. He wanted to get rid of some works of art from the city's museums in order to lower the debt.
Individual evidence
- ^ Leopold Museum (Vienna): GUSTAV KLIMT, STUDY ON THE PAINTING “JUDITH II” , accessed on February 22, 2020
- ↑ Kleine Zeitung (Graz): Venice's mayor wants to auction Klimt's "Judith II" , October 9, 2015