Klimt the Hypochondriac

Considering the incomparable beauty and harmony emanating from Klimt's works of art, it is astonishing that Klimt himself was evidently a person often dissatisfied with himself and the world around him. Above all, the many letters that Klimt sent over the years to his partner, Emilie Flöge, in which he writes unabashedly about his state of mind, create the impression that his personality was anything but harmonious.

In addition to regular moaning and complaints about the hardships of everyday life or the bad weather, there were constantly recurring complaints of varying degrees of physical impairment, ranging from a common cold or a headache, to an irritating pain from an abscess on his jaw.

The complaints were particularly unpleasant while Klimt was traveling, albeit rarely. While in Brussels in May, 1914, he reports: "Sadly, my cold has become unbearable, as has my nasty cough […] Digestive system—great at first—also no longer working well… catarrh in every nook and cranny … pain in my teeth." Certainly, many of these complaints could have been due to actual physical ailments, but it seems more likely that they stemmed from the master's hypochondriacal tendencies.

When Klimt was traveling, he almost inevitably complained that he did not feel well on his journey, and long since wanted to be back home. For instance, at the end of his mere two-week journey, which took him to Paris and Madrid at the end of October through the beginning of November, 1909, he wrote to Emilie Flöge: "My brain and my stomach both wish to travel home and are quietly nagging me."