Baby

This painting, which Klimt painted almost at the end of his life, deviates from Klimt’s usual canon of motifs. It shows a baby in a cradle. There is no background information on the child or its parents. The baby is, in all likelihood, the product of one of Klimt’s numerous relationships with his models since his supposedly platonic relationship to Emilia Flöge leaves much ground for speculation. After Klimt’s death, no less than fourteen claims for paternity were submitted by the mothers’ of illegitimate children. Only three of these claims were actually acknowledged: two for Maria Zimmer (1879-1975), whom Klimt immortalised in the painting Schubert at the Piano (1899), and one for Maria Ucicky whose son Gustav (1899-1961) became most famous for his work as a director of propaganda movies in Austria under the rule of Nazi Germany.

In triangular composition of the painting, the baby is placed at the top of a “pyramid” of thick, richly coloured blankets which seem to be expanding beyond the frame of the cradle. The fact that the baby is so thickly wrapped into the blanket could be interpreted as a sign of deep motherly affection. The little head is resting on a pillow that is covering the rear board of the cradle. The child seems to be happy where it is, judging by the attentive and expectant look at the sight of the (not visible) person at the other end of the cradle.

Despite the uniqueness of this motif among Klimt’s other works, it stills takes up a common topic, even if it does so indirectly: the whole spectrum of female sexuality.