How Many Times Did Adele Bloch-Bauer Pose for Klimt as a Model?

Adele Bloch-Bauer was regarded as Gustav Klimt’s favorite model, having posed for two of his portraits.

Intro of Adele Bloch-Bauer Portraits

The first Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I took almost five years to complete (1903 - 1907). It was Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer, Adele’s husband who commissioned Klimt to create a portrait of his wife. Besides using oil on canvas, Klimt incorporated gold leaf motif when creating this masterpiece. This painting has gone ahead to inspire the release of songs and films such as Woman in Gold, a British motion picture released in 2015.

Klimt painted the second Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II in 1912 after Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer requested him to create yet another portrait of his wife. After a colossal tug-of-war erupted regarding the rightful owner of this portrait, it was sold to Oprah Winfrey for a whopping $88 million. Adele Bloch-Bauer and painter Gustav Klimt shared a close friendship characterized by mutual respect and understanding. Although Klimt was known to be a womanizer (he slept with most of his models), he esteemed the Bloch-Bauer family for bankrolling some of his artworks.

Intro of Adele Bloch-Bauer

Born on 9th August 1881, Adele was born and raised in the beautiful city of Vienna, Austria. Her parents, Moritz and Jeannette Bauer, had seven children and Adele was the youngest daughter. Apart from his role as Viennese Bank’s General Director, Moritz Bauer headed the illustrious Orient railway company as its president. Adele enjoyed a relatively sheltered life. However, his elder brother (Karl Bauer) died when she was fifteen years old, causing her entire world to spiral off. The resulting trauma prompted Adele to shun religion. Her parents didn’t allow her to study, causing her much sadness and this grief inspired Adele to get married when she was merely eighteen.

Her husband Ferdinand was 17 years older than Adele. Despite being married to a wealthy man, Adele established her salon in Vienna. Adele had a mixed persona: she was delicate and calm yet proud and sophisticated with a touch of independence. Adele met Klimt in the late 1890s, years before Ferdinand (her husband) hired Klimt to paint Adele’s portrait.

The Charm of Adele Bloch-Bauer

Adele had a unique charm. Although it was Adele's husband who appointed Gustav Klimt to paint her first portrait, the length it took to complete the painting (5 years) and the exquisiteness of the final portrait suggested a robust, intimate understanding between Klimt and Adele. Before Klimt started to paint this particular portrait, he prepared more than a hundred sketches in the initial stage. He even traveled to Ravenna to learn about how gold was utilized to create stunning mosaics that were showcased in the Basilica of San Vitale. Klimt used this knowledge to create a stunning portrait that depicts Adele, adorned in golden attire, sitting upon a golden chair. The rich background illustrates a sky full of stars. When Klimt decided to paint the biblical “Judith” later on, he chose Adele to model for him. Adele’s elaborate facial features exuded pride and desire – they brought out Judith’s femme fatale persona perfectly.

When Adele first modeled for Klimt, she was already three years into her marriage with Ferdinand. She had a calm, collected persona at this time. She exuded a romantic persona that Klimt found irresistible. Despite being uneducated when her parents married her off, Adele taught herself French, German and English literature. This prerogative originated from her deep-seated craving for independence. All her life, Adele hadn’t honestly been happy – the sudden death of her beloved elder brother when she was younger, coupled by her parents’ unwillingness to educate her, only added fuel to the fire. After her forceful marriage to Ferdinand, she enjoyed a brief period of tranquility and peace away from her parents. Adele’s joy was evident in her first portrait.

In the portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II, Adele appears to be more mature. Her confidence and calm disposition reveal a woman who has finally come of age. This portrait revealed her sensual, exotic side. Although Adele’s countenance was narrow and sickly (she appeared as one who suffered), she was known to have an intellectual inclination and occasionally engaged in unladylike behaviors that included smoking.

Relationship Between Klimt and Adele Bloch-Bauer

During the entire period that Adele modeled for Klimt, rumors abounded about a possible affair between the two. Klimt never used a single model twice. When word got out that Adele was posing for a second portrait with Klimt, people rumored that the two were having an affair. However, these gossips were dismissed as hearsay, and they didn't affect the mutual relationship between Klimt and the Bloch-Bauer family. The Bloch-Bauers proceeded to buy numerous drawings and paintings from Klimt, fortifying their cordial association even further.

Adele received a boost in confidence following the fame she gained from Klimt's beautiful portraits of her. However, she never allowed this new found celebrity status to corrupt her – Adele continued running her salon in Vienna. Meanwhile, Klimt’s first portrait of Adele received mixed reactions from critics after being exhibited in 1907. People described his painting as “bizarre” and “grotesque”. Rather than dissuade him, Klimt reacted to this overwhelming reception by producing more striking portraits.

Presently, the two portraits of Adele Bloch-Bauer have an immense significance in the art world. In 2016, an anonymous Chinese art collector bought the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II from Oprah Winfrey for a total sum of $150 million. Ronald Lauder, a co-founder of the famous Neue Galerie situated in New York, bought the Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I in 2006. It cost him $135 million. These two portraits have dramatically increased in value since Klimt painted them in the early 1900s. Klimt was intrigued by the erotic beauty of the female form, a predominant theme that often showed up in his artwork.

Adele Bloch Bauer I, 1907 Painting Reproduction Video: