The Three Ages of Woman

The Three Ages of Woman is an oil on canvas measuring 180 by 180 centimeters, painted by Gustav Klimt in 1905, the same year he left the Vienna Secession, which he had helped found and had led as its first president between 1897 and 1903. The picture presents three women at different stages of life, from a child held close to her young mother to an old woman set apart on the right, as a symbolic summary of the life cycle. The two younger figures sit within a blue aura of flowing patterns and cool colours, while the old woman occupies a separate band, with a more rigid design and warm, earthy tones. This contrast of temperature and texture structures much of the canvas. The mother and child have their eyes closed and touch each other, the only physical contact among the three; the young woman wears flowers around her head, a reference to spring, and her bright, full hair stands against the bowed head of the older woman. Klimt does not soften old age: the elderly body, with its sagging skin, swollen belly and prominent veins, is shown quite openly, and both of her feet are visible, unlike the other two. The background has little depth and reads as a flat decorative surface, in keeping with the decorative ideals of Art Nouveau, so the figures look almost two-dimensional. The work belongs to Klimt's so-called Golden Period, known for ornament and gold and metallic paints, though here the palette is largely neutral and the mood calm. It is held at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in Rome.

Painter

Gustav Klimt

Date

1905

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

180 × 180 cm

Museum

Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Roma, Rome

Genre

allegory, nude

Share:FacebookWhatsApp