After the immersive exhibition of Van Gogh and Monet, now it is time to immerse in Gustav Klimt’s masterpiece. Take a new way to enjoy art in Hall des Lumières, where a multi-sensory exhibition of Gustav Klimt is set in the former Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank, close to City Hall Park, New York.
Hall des Lumières is featuring Klimt’s works in 150 videos that are projected into the whole architecture and accompanied by a music soundtrack. The 30-foot projections of Klimt’s paintings intertwine with beautiful architecture and soundscapes, resulting a perfect aesthetic atmosphere.
Gustav Klimt (1862 – 1918) was an Austrian artist and the most prominent figure of the Vienna Art Nouveau. Many of Klimt’s subject is the depiction of love and woman. Klimt’s masterpieces, like The Kiss and Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer, were created in his “Golden Period”, in which he applied details made of gold leaf, inspired by Byzantine mosaics.
The Kiss depicts an embracing couple, covered by a geometrically-pattern golden robe. The man is crowned with leaves, leaning and kissing the woman’s cheek. The woman figure ornates her hair with flowers, wearing a colorful ring pattern dress. She kneels and closes her eyes as the man is kissing her. The painting is debatable whether it suggests tenderness and tranquility of love, or a violent and domination scene of man over woman. The artist left the question to the viewers to be interpreted.
Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer is also highlighted in Hall des Lumières. This is a portrait painting of Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer’s wife. Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer is an industrialist who commissioned Klimt to paint Adele, his wife. The artist combines the naturalistic style which appears in Adele’s face and hands, with the ornamental decoration for her dress and background. A woman in a shimmering scene symbolizes her prosperity and power.
In the show entitled Gustav Klimt: Gold in Motion, the viewer can see The Kiss and other Klimt’s artworks animated and projected throughout the room in the hall. The show allows the visitor to experience stunning details of the artworks like never before.
Along with Gustav Klimt’s animated show, the immersive exhibition is also featuring Friedensreich Hundertwasser’s artworks. Hundertwasser was an Austrian painter who inspired by Klimt. Hundertwasser is best known for his exploration of colorful, ornamental, and biomorphic shapes. He is interested in spirals and arabesque lines that symbolize dynamic life and nature.
In Gustav Klimt: Gold in Motion, the viewer can also enjoy a digitally augmented dance performance “5 Movements” by studio Nohlab. This work invites the audience to explore space and time through a performer’s five different types of body movements.
Gustav Klimt: Gold in Motion is on view at Culturespace, 49 CHAMBERS ST, New York, through December, 31st.