Three Courtesans (Drei stehende Frauenakte)

Three Courtesans (Drei stehende Frauenakte) by Gustav Klimt is a powerful pencil drawing executed circa 1907, illustrating the Austrian master's intense focus on the raw human form during his mature period. The work, rendered primarily in pencil on paper, demonstrates Klimt’s mastery of spontaneous, yet structurally sound, draftsmanship. Unlike the highly ornamental style characteristic of his contemporary oil paintings, this drawing emphasizes the quick capture of movement, weight, and volume through economic, expressive lines.

The composition features three standing female nudes, overlapping slightly and occupying the central plane. These figures are not idealized; rather, Klimt employs a frank, psychological approach that reflects the preoccupations of Viennese Modernism in the early 20th century. The technique relies on variations in pressure and short, delicate hatching to imply shadow and mass, revealing the artist’s iterative process of studying anatomy and pose. Created during the transformative period of c.1907–10, this piece belongs to a vast body of preparatory studies that informed the figure work in major canvases like The Kiss and Danaë.

Klimt's commitment to drawing as a major art form provided him the freedom to explore eroticism and the complexity of the female subject without the constraints of his gilded palette. As a crucial document of the Austrian Secession movement’s aesthetic shift, this drawing offers invaluable insight into the private workings of the studio. The work today resides in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Given the widespread appreciation for the artist’s figure studies, high-quality prints reflecting the linear intensity of this drawing are often sought after, particularly those dating from the period before they entered the public domain.