iklimt.com

iklimt.com

this is a beautifully designed site that i stumbled across years ago. i still visit it from time to time because it's a very serene interface with music, a nice compilation of klimt's artwork, and well-written essays about the artist.

if you're viewing a painting, you can select a magnifying tool and a small viewing window appears, which you can drag across parts of the painting to see details up close. the essays attempt to contextualize the artist. they delve into klimt's connections with freud, and how freud's work influenced the content of his paintings. klimt seemed to invite a psychological interpretation of his work, stating that "whoever wants to know something about me, must observe my paintings carefully and try to see in them what i am." (this is a well-chosen quote by the author of the site, and appears as the site splash page.) the essays claim that klimt painted figures naked first, then painted the clothing on top - which appears to be documented in at least one painting, but i'd like to see more research on that before finding it to be credible.

aside from this minor criticism, the essays are compelling and worth reading. the essays, klimt's work, and the wonderful web design make this a truly great space.