Le Poirier: fruit tree, color and structure
Klimt transforms a tree laden with pears into colorful architecture. The trunk branches like a drawing, the fruits punctuate the crown and the garden is organized into strips which gradually bring the landscape closer to a tapestry.
A fruit tree built like a world
The pear tree is a square painted in 1903 around Litzlberg, on the banks of the Attersee. The main tree fills almost the entire canvas: its crown forms an autonomous mass, while branches, fruits and colorful touches organize the surface.
Klimt doesn't just copy a pear tree. He uses his growth to construct the painting. The trunk provides the framework, the branches distribute directions and the fruits create a rhythm of hot spots among the greens and blues.
How does the tree hold the whole square?
The profusion of leaves does not mask the composition. Under the sparkle, Klimt installs an extremely clear framework.
A flexible column
Shifted to the left, it rises then divides without enclosing the composition in symmetry.
A steering network
The diagonals distribute the gaze towards the edges and prevent the crown from becoming a simple mass.
Points of light
Yellow and orange pears punctuate the green like isolated notes in a score.
A stabilized space
Soil, bottom trunks and foliage are superimposed in layers parallel to the plane of the painting.
A crown, a trunk and three depths
The upper part is dominated by the blue-green crown. The main trunk, almost central but slightly offset, opens several large branches. At the bottom, a strip of light terrain and a series of secondary trunks indicate depth.
The bottom is never a void. It remains active thanks to the blue, purple, white and green touches, which connect the tree to the rest of the garden.
Three details that reveal the method
The enlargements show the difference between the tree recognized from afar and the mosaic of material discovered up close.
The denser left
The layers appear thicker and more repeated, an indication of prolonged work beyond 1903.
Branches and fruits
The branch is not just botanical: it serves as a guideline between the yellow foci.
The layered garden
The horizontals of the ground and the trunks at the bottom give just enough depth to maintain the landscape.
The title also describes the composition
The pear tree is at the same time a living being, a reservoir of colors and the skeleton which orders the square.
The fruit tree
Klimt shows a productive tree, laden with fruit. The motif belongs to the real garden and the concrete cycle of the seasons.
The color
Pears introduce warm yellows and oranges, opposed to the cold greens and blues of the foliage.
The structure
Trunk, branches and strips of land hold the profusion together without resorting to a central perspective.
The material tells of a long duration
According to the Gustav Klimt Database, Klimt gave the work to Emilie Flöge in 1903, but the difference in thickness between the left and center or right suggests that he probably continued working on it until his death.
This hypothesis changes the outlook: the painting is no longer just the result of a summer campaign, but a motif kept close to it and re-examined over time.
The Pear Tree at Harvard
The work belongs to the Busch-Reisinger Museum, part of the Harvard Art Museums in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is numbered BR66.4 and entered the collection in 1966.
Hanging may vary. The official sheet and the collections portal must be consulted before a visit to confirm the presence of the painting in the gallery.
Litzlberg, orchards and summers by the lake
Klimt stayed at the Bräuhof in Litzlberg from 1900 to 1907. Fruit trees, gardens and views of the lake then became a major laboratory for his modern painting.
Litzlberg and Attersee
The open landscape of the lake contrasts with the closed framing of the pear tree, tightened onto the garden.
Klimt and Emilie Flöge
The link is particularly important here: Klimt offers it to him The pear tree in 1903.
The Klimt course
The region preserves the memory of the countryside which produced most of its square landscapes.
From the fruit tree to the green wall
The pear tree
Trunk, branches and fruits remain clearly readable under the key network.
The apple tree
The crown becomes a large rounded volume, loaded with colored dots.
Apple tree II
The sky crosses the crown and matter becomes freer, almost atmospheric.
Flower garden
Plants replace the tree as the framework of an almost total surface area.
The park
The trunks dissolve; the foliage becomes the real subject of the painting.
| Work | Main structure | Role of color | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|
| The pear tree | Fan-shaped trunk and branches | Yellow fruits as accents | Garden in strips |
| The apple tree | Rounded crown | Points distributed in the mass | Compressed bottom |
| Flower garden | Flower pyramid | Vivid complements | Almost erased |
| The park | Canopy continues | Dark mosaic | Blocked by the hedge |
A gift to Emilie Flöge which became a museum work
Painting in Litzlberg
Klimt transforms a garden fruit tree into an experience of color and flatness.
Donation to Emilie Flöge
The work enters the intimate sphere of the fashion designer and the painter's closest companion.
Probably resumed
The different thickness of the left part suggests that Klimt continued to work the canvas over the years.
Busch - Reisinger Museum
The pear tree joined the Harvard collection under number BR66.4.
The Poirier and the fruit landscapes
Continue into the landscapes of Klimt
Understand everything about The pear tree
When did Klimt paint Le Poirier?
In 1903, during the period of his summer campaigns in Litzlberg on the banks of the Attersee.
Where is Le Poirier today?
At the Busch -Reisinger Museum of the Harvard Art Museums in Cambridge, number BR66.4.
What are the dimensions of the table?
101 × 101 cm: an exact square.
What is his technique?
Oil and gold leaf on canvas according to the collection notice taken up by Wikimedia Commons.
Why are pears important?
They punctuate the crown with yellows and oranges, create rhythm and make the structure of the tree visible.
Did Klimt give the painting to Emilie Flöge?
Yes, research indicates he gave it to her in 1903.
Has the table been reworked?
Probably. Thicker application on the left suggests post-first state recoveries.
Can we see the work all the time?
Hanging may vary; check the Harvard Art Museums profile before the visit.
0 comments