Kolomon Moser

Moser was one of the most versatile and prolific artists and designers of his age. While the Viennese art scene was at its peak of creative activity in and around 1900, Moser was at the forefront working as a teacher, artist and craftsman.

Trained at the Kunstgewerbeschule, where he later taught, Moser broke away from traditional establishment and devoted his energy to the up and coming artistic movements that surrounded him. With Gustav Klimt, Moser co-founded the Vienna Secession in 1897 and later in 1903, with his friend and colleague Josef Hoffmann, he founded the Wiener Werkstätte, whose workshops set tastes and trends that extended far beyond the boundaries of Vienna. In 1905, together with Gustav Klimt, Moser separated from the Vienna Secession.

The diversity and strength of Moser’s creative talents can clearly be seen in his paintings and the reference to classical Greek and Roman art, as a reaction to baroque decadence, is also very present in Moser’s work and design. Paired with strength in draughtsmanship, Moser’s paintings also incorporate elements of design and architecture in their structure and composition, such as in the present work. Moser here depicts a powerful scene from Greek mythology and the potency and strength of this dramatic scene is enhanced by the frieze-like composition and the tiered groups of figures who appear to move in unison.