Church in Unterach on the Attersee 1916

Gustav Klimt made this painting of the Church in Unterach on the Attersee, and I find it so interesting to see him working with these little square marks, like mosaic tiles, as a way of building up the image. The way the paint sits on the surface has a kind of repetitive quality. You see this especially in the reflections on the water – all these tiny flicks of color. And then the way he builds up the foliage, using similar marks, creates a real sense of texture. The whole painting has this tapestry-like quality, as if it's been woven together. Look at the way the buildings are outlined, almost tentatively, with thin lines that seem to vibrate against the heavier blocks of color. This interest in surface and pattern reminds me of some of the Post-Impressionists, like Seurat, but Klimt brings his own kind of sensual, almost decadent sensibility to it. For Klimt, ambiguity is a strength.