Lady with a Fan c. 1908

Editor: Here we have Gustav Klimt's "Lady with a Fan," a beguiling sketch housed here at Harvard. It feels so intimate, like a stolen glance. What strikes you most about it? Curator: It's a whisper, isn't it? Klimt, typically lavish, here offers restraint. The lack of definitive lines almost suggests she's a fleeting thought. And that fan, a shield or an invitation? It's a dance between revelation and concealment. Does it remind you of anything? Editor: I suppose, a little bit of the ambiguity of some of the impressionist works. Curator: Exactly. It's as if Klimt is asking us, "What do *you* project onto this vision?" More of a conversation than a statement. Editor: It makes you consider what the full portrait might have looked like. Curator: Indeed! A tantalizing glimpse into Klimt's process, and perhaps into the soul of the lady herself. A memory not fully formed.