The best of Klimt's drawings and watercolors, beautifully reproduced in full color. There is no doubt about Gustav Klimt's greatness as a draftsman. Remarkable above all is the intensely sensual mood that he establishes in his limpid, fluid drawings and watercolors: the pencil or crayon line with which his subjects are described explores and caresses as though the act of drawing was itself a seduction. Klimt's drawings are often highly erotic and explicit, many to such an extent that they have rarely been reproduced. This has made for an unbalanced representation of his work as a draftsman, and a comprehensive survey of his graphic output is long overdue. Rainer Metzger, a noted art historian, has brought together hundreds of Klimt's drawings and watercolors in a way that enriches our knowledge of the artist and enhances the visual impact of his oeuvre. Klimt's drawings and studies, and his elegantly direct and dangerously intoxicating preparatory sketches, reveal the underlying impetus for and structure of his elaborate canvases. 307 color illustrations.

Review Few gifts shine more brightly than a beautifully presented monograph. The gilt-spined large-format Klimt (Prestel), edited by Alfred Weidinger, encompasses the Viennese Art Nouveau master's luminous oeuvre, with such highlights as frescoes recently uncovered in a church in Istria and the contentious Bloch-Bauer portraits. --Vogue, December 2007 The Kiss by Gustav Klimt is considered to be one of the most passionate paintings of the Vienna Secession movement, a style and period of painting founded by the artist, and one that is closely connected to the European Art Nouveau movement. While The Kiss is certainly one of Klimt's most popular works, it only scratches the surface of the painter's talent. Klimt (Prestel, $ 165) by Alfred Weidinger is a staggering work of art presented in 320 pages with more than 600 illustrations. This oversized monograph completely covers Klimt's paintings and frescoes and offers illuminating commentary that tracks some of the latest academic findings on the artist. --Florida International Magazine, December 2007 The lavish tome comes with its own sumptuous, gildeed box . . . it's a very thorough survey of the artist's work. And the large format offers the advantage of studying some details in exquisite close-up. The size of a small coffeetable, perhaps this is the ultimate coffee-table book. --Austin American-Statesman, December 2, 2007 Product Description Grand in size and sumptuously produced, this monograph presents Klimt's complete painted works in all their opulent detail and sensuous beauty. This uniquely exhaustive survey of the leading artist of Viennese Art Nouveau style offers art lovers an irresistible opportunity: page after page of Klimt's paintings and frescoes along with illuminating commentary about his life and career. The author presents Klimt's entire painted oeuvre on an unprecedented scale. His commentary reflects the latest academic findings, such as Klimt's newly discovered church frescoes in Istria, in chapters featuring a wide-range of topics, including Klimt and women, the Viennese Secession, landscapes, portraits, and allegories. This volume's remarkable packaging reflects the magnificence of the work within. The book's large format allows close examination of the exquisite detail and luminescent quality of the work for which Klimt is renowned, making it a perfect gift or collector's item. Best of all, it provides viewers with an all-encompassing perspective on one of history's greatest painters.

Gustav Klimt's unique style combines sensuality, realism, and spirituality to make his work recognizable and among the most popular in the history of art. His primary focus on women has led to the most ethereal portraits and murals ever produced. The text explores Vienna at the turn of the century and Klimt's importance in its society and within the context of the modern art movement. 60 + color illustrations, faithfully reproduced.