Gustav Klimt – Water Serpents II

Water Serpents II is Klimt’s painting of 1904–1907: two nude women floating horizontally across the whole canvas, one with long red hair, the other fair, surrounded by gold and colourful ornament, flowers and scales. The original, oil on canvas, is now in a private collection. We paint it by hand in oil on canvas, in several sizes or to your own measurement, and send you a photograph of the finished work for approval before dispatch.

Water Serpents II – Gustav Klimt

What does the painting show?

The canvas is long and low, almost twice as wide as it is high, and along its whole length float two nude women. They lie horizontally, as if carried by water: one has long red hair spilling over the ornament, the other is fair and turns her face towards us. Their bodies are pale, soft and elongated, almost weightless.

Between and around them flows gold and colourful ornament: circles, flowers, tiny scales like a fish’s, and winding lines. In the upper right corner two more faces appear out of the darkness, heads only, without bodies. The background is dark, so the gold, the red hair and the pale skin glow all the more. This is Klimt in his Golden Period, when ornament became as important as the figures.

Why is Water Serpents II so famous?

Besides its beauty, its price made it famous. In 2012 the art dealer Yves Bouvier bought it for 112 million dollars, and a year later he sold it to the collector Dmitry Rybolovlev for 183.3 million dollars. In 2015 Rybolovlev sold it for 170 million dollars to a buyer whose name was not made public.

Those figures place it among the most expensive Klimt paintings and among the most expensive paintings of all. That is why you will not see it in a museum: it is in a private collection in Asia. If you want it in front of you every day, a version painted by hand for your own wall is the way to have it.

What does the painting mean?

In Klimt’s world, water serpents are water beings: women floating as if they were part of the waves. There is no story, no scene with a beginning and an end, only the movement of water and the bodies that give themselves up to it. That is why the painting feels dreamlike, soft and very calm, even though it is full of ornament.

Many viewers see in it femininity, sensuality and freedom, as Klimt liked to paint them in those years. The gold ornament does not tell a tale; it connects: hair, water, flowers and scales merge into one single current. That is exactly why the painting suits the wall above a bed or a sofa, where a room is meant to calm.

Where is the painting today, and what is its story?

Klimt painted it between 1904 and 1907, in the same years as some of his most famous golden works. Later it belonged to Jenny Steiner, who had to flee Vienna in 1938. Before the sale in 2012, the owner and Jenny Steiner’s heirs agreed to split the proceeds between them.

After the sales of 2012, 2013 and 2015 the painting is in a private collection in Asia and is not on public view. Older descriptions wrongly placed it in a gallery in Rome, so we have corrected the entry in the table. The original measures 80 cm high and 145 cm wide, and that horizontal shape decides our sizes.

Water Serpents II among Klimt’s works

Klimt painted the theme of water beings twice. The older sister of this painting is Water Serpents I, a small upright work on parchment with gold and silver, kept by the Belvedere in Vienna. How to choose: Water Serpents II is a long horizontal painting for above a sofa or a bed, Water Serpents I is tall and narrow for a slim wall between doors or windows.

From the same years we also paint The Three Ages of Woman and the famous The Kiss, both with golden ornament. Klimt painted women close together again later, in Girlfriends. You can read more about the painter on Wikipedia.

How is our hand-painted version made?

The painter first draws both bodies, their faces and hair in thin lines, then paints the pale skin smoothly, in several layers. Only after that comes the ornament: circles, flowers and scales, one after another. We paint the golden parts by hand with gold paint and a brush, so that the light breaks nicely on them; we do not use gold leaf.

The photographs at the top of the page show a copy we have painted. The first photograph shows it in a thin gold frame on an easel in our framing workshop, with frame mouldings all around. The second photograph shows it close up and at an angle, so you can see the brushstrokes and the shine of the gold paint. The third photograph shows the same painting from the other side, where the faces at the right end are easy to see.

Every painting is a hand-painted copy made for your order, so no two are ever quite the same. A printed oil painting reproduction cannot show the relief of the brushstrokes and the depth of colour that you can see and feel on the canvas.

Which size for which wall?

Short answer: above a sofa or a double bed choose 120 x 65 or 145 x 80 cm, for a smaller wall 90 x 50 or 100 x 55 cm, and for a large wall 160 x 90 or 180 x 100 cm. The sizes are 80 x 45, 90 x 50, 100 x 55, 120 x 65, 145 x 80, 160 x 90 and 180 x 100 cm.

All of them are horizontal like the original, and 145 x 80 cm is the size of the original itself. Because the painting is long and low, it is made for long furniture: a sofa, a bed, a sideboard or a dining table. It shows best on a light wall. A painting for the living room should take up about two thirds of the width of the furniture below it.

Hang it with the centre of the canvas about 150 cm above the floor, and 20 to 30 cm above a sofa or a bed.

Custom size, stretcher and frame

If you need a different size, for example exactly the width of your sofa, we paint it to measure. Send us the width and height you want and we will quote a price and a lead time. Every painting we make is stretched over a wooden stretcher and ready to hang.

For the moulding, use our 3D application: it shows every one of our frame profiles on this subject, so you can compare gold, silver, black, white and natural wood before deciding – the application is for choosing the frame only. If you would like to see how the painting will look on your own wall, that is our separate room placement service. A thin gold frame, like the one in the photographs above, carries on the golden ornament, but the painting also looks good unframed.

Delivery and guarantee

Every painting is made to order in our studio in Slovenia, so allow 15 to 45 days depending on the size you choose. We ship it stretched and protected for transport, framed if you chose a frame, across the EU with no customs. Before dispatch you receive a photograph of the finished work to approve; if anything is not right, we correct it while the canvas is still in our workshop. Our returns policy applies to every order.

Every other Klimt work we paint is in the Gustav Klimt gallery, and there is more about the painter in our ten facts about Klimt. If the painting is a gift and you are unsure of the size, there is a wall art voucher: the recipient chooses the size and the subject.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Water Serpents II today?

Water Serpents II is in a private collection in Asia and is not on public view. After the sales of 2012, 2013 and 2015 it belongs to a buyer whose name was not made public. Older descriptions wrongly placed it in a gallery in Rome. You can read more about its story on Wikipedia.

What does Water Serpents II mean?

Water Serpents II shows water beings, women floating as if carried by the waves. It tells no story; it creates a dreamlike state in which hair, water, flowers and scales merge into one current. Many see in it femininity, sensuality and freedom, which is why it feels so soft and calming on a wall.

How much did Water Serpents II sell for?

Water Serpents II has changed hands several times for extraordinary sums. In 2012 Yves Bouvier bought it for 112 million dollars, in 2013 he sold it to Dmitry Rybolovlev for 183.3 million, and in 2015 Rybolovlev sold it for 170 million dollars. Our painting, made by hand in oil, of course costs only a tiny fraction of that.

What is the difference between Water Serpents I and Water Serpents II?

Water Serpents II is a large horizontal oil painting, 80 x 145 cm, in a private collection. Water Serpents I is a small upright work, 50 x 20 cm, painted in watercolour, gouache and metals on parchment and kept by the Belvedere in Vienna. Choose the first for a long wall and the second for a narrow, tall one.

When was Water Serpents II painted?

Water Serpents II was painted between 1904 and 1907. That is Klimt’s Golden Period, the years that also produced The Kiss and in which golden ornament became as important as the figures themselves. Klimt painted the theme of water beings twice; the earlier version is Water Serpents I.

How many women are in Water Serpents II?

Water Serpents II shows two nude women in the foreground, floating horizontally across the canvas, one red-haired and one fair. In the upper right corner two more faces emerge from the darkness, heads only, without bodies. So there are four women in all, but the eye always returns to the first two.

Is the gold on Water Serpents II real gold?

On our Water Serpents II the gold is painted by hand with gold paint and a brush, not laid on as gold leaf. That way it sits well with the rest of the oil colours and stays stable over the years. In the photographs above you can see how the light breaks on the golden circles and scales.

Which size of Water Serpents II should I choose?

For Water Serpents II above a sofa or a bed, choose 120 x 65 or 145 x 80 cm, which is the size of the original. As a canvas painting it should take up about two thirds of the width of the furniture below. For a smaller wall 90 x 50 and 100 x 55 cm suit well, for a very large one 180 x 100 cm.

Is Water Serpents II a good gift?

Yes, Water Serpents II makes a lovely gift for someone who loves Klimt, gold and soft, dreamlike subjects, for example for a new home or a wedding. Because we paint every painting individually, we can match the size to the recipient’s wall. Before dispatch you receive a photograph of the finished work, so you know exactly what you are giving.

• Subject: two nude women floating horizontally in gold and colourful ornament, with two more faces at the upper right.
• Original: 1904–1907, 80 x 145 cm, private collection.
• Ours: a Klimt reproduction painted by hand in oil on canvas, gold in gold paint, in several sizes or made to measure.
• Worth knowing: you receive a photograph of the finished work for approval before dispatch.