chunks of flommus
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klimt in london

“Hermine Gallia, who was born in Hamburg, was the wife of Moritz Gallia. Moritz began by running one of the most modern gas and electricity plants in the empire and later held shares in numerous other companies. The couple were among those members of affluent middle-class society in Vienna who had Jewish roots and were very receptive to modern art and culture.”
—Google Arts & Culture

Wearing a shimmering dress made of translucent white chiffon, Hermine Gallia appears almost to float before us.

This is the only painting
by Gustav Klimt (1862–1918) in a British public collection – and it’s a fine example of the portraits of society women he painted in the early years of the twentieth century.

The sinuous lines of her dress recall Art Nouveau and Japanese prints.

The geometrical pattern of its lower half, and the mosaic-like design of the carpet, hint at the ‘Byzantine’ style Klimt was to adopt a few years later.

Klimt was the leading artist in Austria at the time.

He was a founding member and the first president of the Vienna Secession, an association established in 1897 to promote modernism in art, design and architecture.

Hermine Gallia and her husband were also important patrons of the avant garde.

“The Gallias not only commissioned Klimt to paint a portrait of Hermine and, in addition, owned a landscape painting by him but, in 1913, they had their whole house furnished by Klimt’s fellow artist, the brilliant architect and designer Josef Hoffmann (1870–1956). Moritz Gallia was a partner in the ‘Wiener Werkstätte’ (Vienna Workshop) design company that had been co-founded by Hoffmann.”
—Google Arts & Culture

—julija svetlova

Flommist Julija Svetlova is an art historian, freelance researcher and a founder of Neja’s Art Walks, a bespoke provider of art and history-related tours and experiences in London. Julija previously worked as a collection research assistant at the Tate. Copyright © 2023 Julija Svetlova.