Klimt The Kiss Silk Habotai Scarf

DESIGNER'S NOTES

A bright and sunny Fox & Chave silk habotai scarf with a design featuring elements from the world famous painting The Kiss by Gustav Klimt (1862-1918)

The Kiss (1907–1908) represents the pinnacle of Klimt's so called Golden Phase, a period heavily influenced by the Byzantine mosaics he encountered in Ravenna. While the couple is often identified as Klimt and his lifelong companion Emilie Flöge, some historians suggest the female figure may be 'Red Hilda,' a model who frequently appeared in his more erotic sketches.

Klimt utilised a complex layering process, applying delicate gold leaf over oil paint to create a shimmering, secular icon. Interestingly, the Austrian government purchased the unfinished canvas for 25,000 crowns, an unprecedented sum at the time, rescuing Klimt from the public scandal surrounding his previous University Paintings, which had been condemned as 'obscene.'

COLOURS

STYLING

A Fox & Chave habotai silk scarf can be worn with the classic knot style or a pussycat bow. You can even create a shawl effect by knotting two scarves together behind your neck and allowing them to drape over your shoulders. More scarf styling ideas are available in this wonderful How to Tie a Scarf book.