Fruit Trees 1901

Gustav Klimt painted these Fruit Trees, sometime before 1918, most likely in oil on canvas. What hits you first is the all-overness. Look at that field of gold and green, and then those trees, shimmering with dabs of blue and yellow. Klimt is working in a way that embraces process, so that the painting feels less like a window and more like a surface made of marks. Up close you can really see those individual marks, the physicality of the paint. It's not about hiding the labor, but about reveling in it. See how each little dab of color vibrates against its neighbor? It’s like he’s trying to capture not just the trees, but the very feeling of being among them, the light and shadow, the buzzing of insects. Those little blue dots are like tiny portals, pulling you into the depths of the foliage. In some ways, this reminds me of Van Gogh's landscapes, but with a Viennese twist. There’s a similar intensity, but also a decorative sensibility. Klimt seems to be saying that art is not just about representation, but about creating a whole new world of sensation and feeling.