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What the painting shows
Fable by Klimt centers on a standing nude woman who looks down toward the left. A length of white fabric hangs loosely from her shoulder and gathers on the ground behind her. She holds a rolled scroll in her right hand and rests her left hand against her chest.
Several animals from classical fables surround her in a shadowy woodland setting. In the lower left foreground, a lion sleeps on the earth with its front paws outstretched. Two small mice perch quietly on a leafy branch directly above the lion. To the right of the woman, two tall storks stand near a fox that holds a glass vessel containing small creatures. One stork holds a frog in its bill. Earthy browns and deep shadows cover the scene, contrasted by bright green foliage and a patch of light sky visible in the background.
The story behind it
Klimt painted Fable in 1883 using oil on canvas. The picture is classified among his early works. By bringing together diverse fable creatures around a personified female figure, the composition stands as one of Klimt’s allegories. The canvas measures 83.5 by 116 centimeters.
Where to see it
You can see Fable in Vienna, Austria, where it belongs to the collection of Wien Museum.
Questions about Fable
Where is Fable by Klimt?
Fable by Klimt is in the collection of Wien Museum in Vienna, Austria. The museum preserves the original 1883 oil painting alongside other works from his early career. Visitors to Vienna can see the canvas on display at the museum, where it measures 83.5 centimeters high by 116 centimeters wide.
How big is Fable by Klimt?
Fable by Klimt measures 83.5 centimeters in height by 116 centimeters in width. This medium-sized oil on canvas painting uses a horizontal format to arrange the central allegorical female figure alongside a sleeping lion, two storks, mice, and a fox in a landscape setting. The work is held by Wien Museum in Vienna.
