Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I
Encyclopedia
Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I is a painting
by Gustav Klimt
completed in 1907. According to press reports it was sold for US$135 million to Ronald Lauder
for his Neue Galerie
in New York City
in June 2006, which made it at that time the most expensive painting for about 4 months. It has been on display at the gallery since July 2006.
, a group of artists that broke away from the traditional way of painting. The picture was painted in Vienna
and commissioned by Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer. As a wealthy industrialist who had made his fortune in the sugar industry, he sponsored the arts and favored and supported Gustav Klimt. Adele Bloch-Bauer became the only model who was painted twice by Klimt when he completed a second picture of her, Adele Bloch-Bauer II
, in 1912.
Adele Bloch-Bauer, in her will, asked her husband to donate the Klimt paintings to the Austrian State Gallery
upon his death. She died in 1925 from meningitis. When the Nazis took over Austria
, her widowed husband had to flee to Switzerland. His property, including the Klimt paintings, was confiscated. In his 1945 testament, Bloch-Bauer designated his nephew and nieces, including Maria Altmann
, as the inheritors of his estate.
As Bloch-Bauer's pictures had remained in Austria, the government took the position that the testament of Adele Bloch-Bauer had determined that these pictures were to stay there. After a protracted court battle in the United States and in Austria (see Republic of Austria v. Altmann
), binding arbitration by the Austrian court established in 2006 that Maria Altmann was the rightful owner of this and four other paintings by Klimt. After the pictures were sent to America, they were on display in Los Angeles in 2006 before the portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I was sold to Lauder in June 2006. New York's Neue Galerie is reported to have paid $135 million for the fifth looted Klimt portrait, Adele Bloch-Bauer I. Originally, the four additional works by Klimt were included in the exhibition.
The painting is the centerpiece of Ronald Lauder
’s collection, Neue Galerie
in New York. Lauder’s comment on the acquisition for his Neue Gallerie collection: “This is our Mona Lisa
”.
However, in November 2006, Adele Bloch-Bauer II (1912) was sold at auction at Christie's in New York fetching almost $88m. In total the four remaining paintings sold for $192.7 million and the proceeds were divided up among several heirs. The buyers of those paintings remain anonymous. The wish of Maria Altmann that the paintings should be accessible to the general public in a museum has not been fulfilled.
Some factions of the art world called Ms. Altmann's decision to sell all of the restituted paintings greedy. New York Times chief art critic Michael Kimmelman accused her of "cashing in," and thus transforming a "story about justice and redemption after the Holocaust" into "yet another tale of the crazy, intoxicating art market." Kimmelman argued that the family should give the works away, perhaps giving them to public institutions.
The piece was also featured in the 2006 documentary The Rape of Europa
, which dealt with the massive theft of art in Europe by the Nazi Government during World War II.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
by Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
completed in 1907. According to press reports it was sold for US$135 million to Ronald Lauder
Ronald Lauder
Ronald Steven Lauder is a Jewish-American businessman, civic leader, philanthropist, and art collector. Forbes lists Lauder among the richest people of the world with an estimated net worth of $3.0 billion in 2007.-Life and career:...
for his Neue Galerie
Neue Galerie
The Neue Galerie New York is a museum of early twentieth-century German and Austrian art and design located at 86th Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City, United States...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in June 2006, which made it at that time the most expensive painting for about 4 months. It has been on display at the gallery since July 2006.
The painting
Klimt took three years to complete the painting. It measures 138 x 138 cm and is made of oil and gold on canvas, showing elaborate and complex ornamentation as seen in the Jugendstil style. Klimt was a member of the Vienna SecessionVienna Secession
The Vienna Secession was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian artists who had resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists, housed in the Vienna Künstlerhaus. This movement included painters, sculptors, and architects...
, a group of artists that broke away from the traditional way of painting. The picture was painted in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and commissioned by Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer. As a wealthy industrialist who had made his fortune in the sugar industry, he sponsored the arts and favored and supported Gustav Klimt. Adele Bloch-Bauer became the only model who was painted twice by Klimt when he completed a second picture of her, Adele Bloch-Bauer II
Adele Bloch-Bauer II
Adele Bloch-Bauer II is a 1912 painting by Gustav Klimt. Adele Bloch-Bauer was the wife of Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer, who was a wealthy industrialist who sponsored the arts and supported Gustav Klimt. Adele Bloch-Bauer was the only model to be painted twice by Klimt; she also appeared in the much more...
, in 1912.
Ownership of the painting
Österreichische Galerie Belvedere
The Österreichische Galerie Belvedere is a museum housed in the Belvedere palace, in Vienna, Austria.The art collection includes masterpieces from the Middle Ages and Baroque until the 21st century, though it focuses on Austrian painters from the Fin de Siècle and Art Nouveau period...
upon his death. She died in 1925 from meningitis. When the Nazis took over Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, her widowed husband had to flee to Switzerland. His property, including the Klimt paintings, was confiscated. In his 1945 testament, Bloch-Bauer designated his nephew and nieces, including Maria Altmann
Maria Altmann
Maria Altmann was a Jewish refugee from Nazi Austria, noted for her ultimately successful legal campaign to reclaim five family-owned paintings by the artist Gustav Klimt, stolen by the Nazis during World War II, from the Government of Austria.She was born Maria Victoria Bloch, in Vienna...
, as the inheritors of his estate.
As Bloch-Bauer's pictures had remained in Austria, the government took the position that the testament of Adele Bloch-Bauer had determined that these pictures were to stay there. After a protracted court battle in the United States and in Austria (see Republic of Austria v. Altmann
Republic of Austria v. Altmann
Republic of Austria v. Altmann, 541 U.S. 677 , was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act applies retroactively...
), binding arbitration by the Austrian court established in 2006 that Maria Altmann was the rightful owner of this and four other paintings by Klimt. After the pictures were sent to America, they were on display in Los Angeles in 2006 before the portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I was sold to Lauder in June 2006. New York's Neue Galerie is reported to have paid $135 million for the fifth looted Klimt portrait, Adele Bloch-Bauer I. Originally, the four additional works by Klimt were included in the exhibition.
The painting is the centerpiece of Ronald Lauder
Ronald Lauder
Ronald Steven Lauder is a Jewish-American businessman, civic leader, philanthropist, and art collector. Forbes lists Lauder among the richest people of the world with an estimated net worth of $3.0 billion in 2007.-Life and career:...
’s collection, Neue Galerie
Neue Galerie
The Neue Galerie New York is a museum of early twentieth-century German and Austrian art and design located at 86th Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City, United States...
in New York. Lauder’s comment on the acquisition for his Neue Gallerie collection: “This is our Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa is a portrait by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is a painting in oil on a poplar panel, completed circa 1503–1519...
”.
However, in November 2006, Adele Bloch-Bauer II (1912) was sold at auction at Christie's in New York fetching almost $88m. In total the four remaining paintings sold for $192.7 million and the proceeds were divided up among several heirs. The buyers of those paintings remain anonymous. The wish of Maria Altmann that the paintings should be accessible to the general public in a museum has not been fulfilled.
Some factions of the art world called Ms. Altmann's decision to sell all of the restituted paintings greedy. New York Times chief art critic Michael Kimmelman accused her of "cashing in," and thus transforming a "story about justice and redemption after the Holocaust" into "yet another tale of the crazy, intoxicating art market." Kimmelman argued that the family should give the works away, perhaps giving them to public institutions.
Film
Maria Altmann's story has been recounted in three documentary films. Adele's Wish by filmmaker Terrence Turner, who is the husband of Altmann's great-niece, was released in 2008. Adele's Wish featured interviews with Altmann, her lawyer, E. Randol Schoenberg and leading experts from around the world. Altmann's story was also the subject of the documentary Stealing Klimt, which was released in 2007. That movie also featured interviews with Altmann, Schoenberg, and others who were closely involved with the story.The piece was also featured in the 2006 documentary The Rape of Europa
The Rape of Europa
The Rape of Europa: The Fate of Europe's Treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War is a book and a subsequent documentary film of somewhat related material. The book, by Lynn H. Nicholas, explores the Nazi plunder of looted art treasures from occupied countries, and the consequences...
, which dealt with the massive theft of art in Europe by the Nazi Government during World War II.