The Kiss by Gustav Klimt: Nobody Actually Knows Who's Kissing (1907–1908)
There are no faces to speak of — just a jaw in profile, a cheek pressed shut, a pair of closed eyes. Gustav Klimt buries almost everything else under a wall of gold: hard black-and-white rectangles wrapping him, soft spirals of flowers wrapping her, the two figures fused into a single glowing shape kneeling at the edge of a flower-strewn cliff. Painted in Vienna between 1907 and 1908, Der Kuss (The Kiss) is the image most people picture the instant they hear the word "Klimt" — and more than a century later, historians still can't say for certain who is actually being kissed. Quick facts Artist: Gustav Klimt (1862–1918) Date: 1907–1908 Medium: Oil, gold and silver leaf on canvas, 180 × 180 cm Collection: Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna Notable fact: Bought by the Austrian state before Klimt had even finished painting it Gustav Klimt, The Kiss (Der Kuss), 1907–1908. Oil, gold and silver leaf on canvas. Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna. Public domain....