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'Fruit of Klimt' is a photograph I created in January 2016, out of admiration for the inspirational work by painter Gustav Klimt. The fruit of his labors were not simply his paintings, but his influence over the styles of countless artists throughout many countries, over many generations, and from many walks of life. I attempted to stylize the photograph similar to Klimt's work, flattening the perspective to allow the black cloak to almost shift in appearance, sinking into the gold embellished background. Her skin mimicking Klimt's pale figures, her wrist bent like the Woman in Gold, holding a pomegranate in her hand. I chose the pomegranate as a symbol of Klimt's artistic fertility, a plant that is "evergreen throughout the year, enabling thus the human mind to attribute to it the immortality of the soul," whose seeds, "have come to stand for prosperity."
I've only once offered this photograph for sale. I created an 8" x 10" print on metal, placed in an antique frame dating back to the 1930's, which I purchased off of artist and gallery owner Adnan Charara, and spray painted black. It sold within a week to a young couple who walked into the gallery off the street. I always wondered who they were, but the gallery director never felt compelled to divulge that information to me. This is what she looked like:
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Best regards,
John Dykstra