Where to See Gustav Klimt's Art Around the Globe

The Neue Galerie on the Museum Mile in New York City exhibits the works of Klimt and his contemporaries, with a focus on early-20th-century German and Austrian artists. The upper floor of the museum is dedicated to fine and decorative art, including paintings by Klimt, Egon Schiele (protégé of Gustav Klimt) and Oskar Kokoschka CBE. Since 2006, the museum has been home to Klimt’s famous Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer: The Woman in Gold (1907), considered to be one of the artist’s greatest paintings from his Golden Phase. The gallery’s collection also includes a selection of sculptures and photographs, highlighting the relationship between the fine and decorative arts in Vienna during the early 1900s.

The Leopold Museum, which opened its doors in 2001, offers the largest collection of modern Austrian art, with over 5,000 exhibitions, including the largest collection of Egon Schiele. At the heart of the exhibition are Austrian works from the first half of the 20th century, highlighting the transformation from Art Noveau to Expressionism. The museum is home to a variety of Klimt’s masterpieces, such as Death and Life (1906–1916) and Attersee (1900), alongside a collection of approximately 100 drawings. Exhibitions at the Leopold Museum represent some of the most significant works by Austrian artists, including Kokoschka and Gerstl.

The Art Nouveau Secession Building was erected in 1897 as an architectural manifesto of the Vienna Secession group, marking their break with conservative exhibition space Künstlerhaus. Above the entrance, visitors can inspect the Secessionist motto “To every age its art, to every art its freedom.” The Secession Building is home to Klimt’s Beethoven Frieze, which was created for an exhibition in 1902. The 34-metre-long (112ft) painting depicts Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. The final section of the painting (the embracing lovers surrounded by angels) is also known as This Kiss to the Whole World and is considered one of Klimt’s most notable works. The upper levels of the Secession Building feature a variety of temporary exhibitions by modern artists.

Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna (Museum of Art History) is considered one of the five most significant fine-art museums in the world, with collections of Egyptian, Greek and Roman Antiquities, alongside sculptural works and pieces of decorative art. The impressive palace, in which the museum is located, was first opened in 1891 and primarily exhibits works of the Habsburg collection. The museum’s stairwell features 40 spandrel paintings and other works between arches and columns, 11 of which were created by Gustav Klimt. The decoration features themes from the history of art, ranging from ancient Egypt to modernity. The frescoes are brilliant examples of Klimt’s artistic prowess and provide magnificent insight into his unique style.

Partly founded by Klimt, the Belvedere in Vienna showcases an extensive selection of Austrian art. The Baroque palace is home to the world’s largest collection of Klimt’s oil paintings, which includes Judith (1901) and his most famous piece, The Kiss (1907–1908). Painted during his Golden Period, this signature piece depicts a robed couple embracing among flowers and has become one of the most famous Austrian paintings. The Belvedere’s permanent Klimt collection also includes a sketchbook and landscapes.

In 2012, Vienna’s Albertina gallery in the city’s stately First District held an exhibition of Klimt’s work called The Drawings. It featured 170 pages of Klimt’s preliminary and complete sketches, created using pencils, chalk, pen and watercolours. The collection heavily focused on nude images of the female form. Today, you’ll find just a couple of Klimt’s creations in Albertina’s permanent collection. Pieces are rotated regularly and have included the popular Water Nymphs (Silverfish) from 1899.

Come to the Theatermuseum, in the Palais Lobkowitz in Vienna, to see Klimt’s Nuda Veritas (Naked Truth) from 1899. The artwork features a naked woman holding a mirror beneath the Friedrich Schiller quote “If you cannot please everyone with your deeds and your art, please a few. To please many is bad.” Nuda Veritas was given to the museum by artist Hermann Bahr and is on permanent display, along with reproductions of letters written by Klimt. The Theatermuseum is also a stunning piece of art in its own right.

The Three Ages of Woman (1905) is an allegorical painting depicting three women in varying stages of life, from a baby to an old woman – in other words, it represents the circle of life. A mother tenderly embraces her daughter while an elderly woman stands nearby, head looking downward with her hand covering her face. All three figures are nude; however, the young mother’s hair is adorned with flowers while a sheer, colorful cloth wraps around the lower portion of her and her baby’s body. The somber figure of the elderly woman, which may have been inspired by Rodin’s The Old Courtesan, is completely exposed with her saggy, wrinkling skin, signifying that the end is near. This particular work can be found in Rome at the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna. Recommended by Marcelina Morfin

Showing pregnancy in works of art is not a common sight, especially in the past; however, Klimt’s Hope, IIdepicts just that. Painted from 1907-1908, this work features a woman cloaked in a colorful garment with her breasts exposed, looking down with her eyes closed. A skull is peeking out from her robe while three women — who almost seem to get swallowed up by the woman’s garment — at the bottom of the painting are also looking down. The background is neutral, drawing the viewer’s eyes to the center of the painting. While the title bears the word ‘hope,’ everything in the painting leads the spectator to believe that it’s not going to be okay. Find this one at MoMA in New York City. Recommended by Marcelina Morfin