Gustav Klimt’s beguiling representations of women have made him the most celebrated painter of the female portrait in the early twentieth century. Klimt’s women constitute the most important group of works in his oeuvre and are among the truly iconic images of Modern Art.
The exquisite Dame mit Fächer belongs among the very best of his work and within a group of paintings that Klimt produced in the years directly before his death in 1918 and which might be considered the realization of his mature artistic vision. It combines rich patterns and oriental motifs with the delicate and luminous human touch that makes Klimt’s portraits so sought-after. This transcendental notion of womanhood - the éternal féminin - had a long heritage, inspiring generations of artists and some of the most celebrated works ever painted.
Gustav Klimt’s Dame mit Fächer will be offered as a part of Sotheby’s Modern and Contemporary Evening Auction, featuring Face to Face: A Celebration of Portraiture on 27 June at Sotheby’s London as a part of the Summer Season.
