Half-figure of a Young Woman, 1918

Rapidly executed during Klimt´s late period, this sensuous drawing belong to a large group of works that fous on women, strongly recalling the central figures in the paintings The Maiden (1912-13; Národni Galerie, Prague) and The Bride (1917-18; private collection, on loan to the Osterreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna). Klimt was known to draw for many hours each day, often experimentting extensively with a single motif, such as the one seen here, of a woman with her head resting languidly on her shoulder. In addition he relied on multiple drawings, sometimes from vastly different periods, to make a single painting, rendering it difficult to conclusively assinga drawing as preparatory to a particular painting. Most closely associated with The Bride and her long, almost geometric braids, Half-figure of a Young Woman is, characteritically, worked up from sketchy light grey lines into a darker, more agitated strokes.