Reclining Female Semi-Nude from the Left with Raised Leg, 1917

This work on paper is part of a group of reclining female nudes and semi-nudes which Gustav Klimt (1862–1918) created in 1916/17 and which are highly similar in terms of motif and style. The figures in the works of this group are all characterized by slender, elongated proportions. In the present depiction, this impression is heightened by the relatively low vantage point which makes the model appear sunken into the bed. More than most of his late drawings, this work illustrates Klimt’s erratic, nervous style of drawing, which saw him interrupting the stroke and starting anew time and again instead of drawing one continuous contour. Though these jolting strokes can be explained in the present work by the artist’s unfamiliarity with the technique of pen and ink drawing, they also clearly reveal his tendency in later years to merely hint at shapes and interpret them in an expressive manner.

FS