Barrio Escalante, San José

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El Beso de Gustav Klimt "El Beso de la Abuelita", by Francisco Munguía. The ceremonial gold of the Vienna Secession yields its solemnity here to shelter an entirely everyday gesture: an affectionate, tender kiss between a grandson and his grandmother.
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Francisco Munguía

El Beso de Gustav Klimt "El Beso de la Abuelita"Inquire about availability

Year
2019
Technique
Oil/Canvas
Dimensions
50 × 50 cm
Status
Inquire about availability
Palette
ochre gold, pastel pink, grass green, carbon black, pale yellow
Brushwork
Black graphic contour lines over flat oil planes and gold ornamental accents.

Curatorial analysis

The ceremonial gold of the Vienna Secession yields its solemnity here to shelter an entirely everyday gesture: an affectionate, tender kiss between a grandson and his grandmother. Francisco Munguía borrows the emblematic bell-shaped silhouette and ornamental opulence of Gustav Klimt, stripping the scene of its original erotic charge to reconstruct it through the wit of graphic humor, filial devotion, and the warmest domestic intimacy.

The composition pivots around this enclosing golden mass, which operates as a protective cocoon against neutral space. Inside this haven, the surface contrasts two ornamental systems in dialogue. The upper figure, crowned with a leafy garland over dark hair and a simplified face, bends in a protective arc marked by black, white, and gray rectangular patches, lending a sense of serene shelter. Resting in the heart of the embrace is the grandmother, rendered with tenderness through soft pink masses, circular spectacles set upon a peaceful profile, and a silver bun dotted with tiny white flowers. Her schematic hands lock the embrace with deliberate naivety, confirming a physical intimacy free from theatricality.

Along the base, a dense, celebratory meadow dotted with green, purple, and yellow specks roots the golden block to the ground, counterbalancing the luminous suspension of the metallic background textured with ochre squares. Munguía pairs crisp flat planes of color with concentric spirals, circles, and small decorative tesserae executed with sharp precision. The black contour line, stemming from illustration and caricature, brings an immediate visual clarity that respectfully demystifies the modernist canon. In doing so, the piece transforms a universal museum icon into a radiant tribute to memory, old age, and the most sincere family bonds.

El Beso de Gustav Klimt "El Beso de la Abuelita"

More works by Francisco Munguía

42 works

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