$88 Million! What a price to pay but, the story behind this painting is one of hard ship and pain. Of a stealing .
The orginal Painting was by Klimt and in the Jugendstill style .
Klimt was a member of the Vienna Session, a group of artists that broke away from the traditional way of painting. The picture was painted in Vienna and commissioned by Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer. ( The last photo is the orginals painting)
Adele Bloch-Bauer had indicated in her will that it was her wish that the Klimt paints should be donated to the Austrian State Gallery. She died in 1925 from meningitis. When the Nazis took over Austria her widowed husband had to flee to Switzerland. His property including the Klimt paints was confiscated. In his 1845 testament, Bloch-Bauer designated his nephew and nieces, including the inheritors of his estate.
The paintings remain in Austria, the government too position that Adele Bloch Bauer had determined that these pictures were to stay there. After acourt battle in the US and in Austria binding arbitration by the Austrian Maria Altman was rightful owner of this and four other paintings by Klimt. They went to Los Angeles in 2006 before the portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer One was sold to Lauder.
This painting will be the centerpiece in Ronald Lauder's collection for his Neue Galerie in New York. this collection has for years attempted to recover Jewish Owned art. mostly from Germany and Austria, His comment "This is Our Mona Lisa"
Maria Altman's story has been recounted in two documents films, Adele;s Wishes released in 2008 , The subject of the documentary Stealing Klimt, which was released in 2007. The movie also featured interviews with Altmann, others who were closely involved with the story.
Sold for almost $88m in November 2006 at Christie's. The next Tarot Bag to be offered by my studio Bumblebee Lane is not as close in price as the ordinal, and the design was digitized by C. Parks. Her set is called Klimt.
The designs are awesome and I had purchased them ages ago and always cringed at all of the needle changes....
but an incident of last week changed my mind and
on a lazy Saturday evening cranked up my Happy and as always she turned her magic into a finished product. The Tarot Bag measures 8 /4 by 5 small in size but large in detail.
On white velvet with an artists change of colors from the original pinks, purples and silvers created my own "The Kiss".
Lined in gold crushed velvet and a heavy golden cord, crystals in the swirl es of her dress, and a large ring
(like the ones on the Merry go round ...Whoever catches the golden ring ..... Wins!")
There are several bobbles that hang from the large ring .
As always from the Bumblebee Studio all items are normally one of a kind, As this design set from Cathy has many more other Tarot Card Bags with this Theme might be reproduced, depending how one feels.
This Tarot Bag will not be massed produce and truly an artist liberties . Both Cathy and mine. Although, on this one my hubby decided that 2 sets of swirls were needed when I had the design on my computer , as he passed by, What a Guy!
This item can be found on the Esty Shop and as all of the Tarot bags will be the same price thought out this adventure.
Esty Shop:die cuts, journals: http://Silverymoonbeams.etsy.com
Wishing you a glorious day where ever you are and what ever your doing.
As always,
Silvery Moonbeams to watch over you.
Sierra