Klimt's most extraordinary frame surrounds this near-photographic portrait of the pianist Joseph Pembauer. Its wide, flat surface is decorated with various and apparently unrelated, motifs. At top right stands Apollo, the Greek god of music, playing a lyre - a motif echoed in the background of the actual portrait, in a clear reference to Pembauer's musical career. Moving clockwise around the frame is a decorative Ionic column, a fish, a spatula dangling from a loop of rope, adorned with the initials G S which was the trademark of a well-known cafe in Munich, two heads, a Delphic tripod like that in the Hofburg Actor Josef Lewinsky as Carlos and some circles and stars.
The very limited colour range - red, black and gold - and the decorative effect of the motifs combine to produce a porttait with an air of opulence and luxury, fitting for a successful male pianist.
Most Famous Gustav Klimt Paintings
The Kiss by Gustav Klimt
The Sunflower by Gustav Klimt
Death and Life by Gustav Klimt
Beethoven Frieze by Gustav Klimt
Birch Forest by Gustav Klimt
Lady with Fan by Gustav Klimt
Danae by Gustav Klimt
The Three Ages of Woman by Gustav Klimt
Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I by Gustav Klimt
The Tree of Life, Stoclet Frieze by Gustav Klimt
Judith and the Head of Holofernes by Gustav Klimt