T he present work, Weiblicher Kopf, Dekorative Lineare Strukturen (Female Head, Decorative Linear Structures) was created by Gustav Klimt as a preparatory drawing for a large-scale frieze in which the artist paid homage to Ludwig van Bethoven. Painted for the fourteenth exhibition of the Vienna Secession, the 112 foot long frieze represents an allegory of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. The work, which spans three walls, was separated in various parts meant to symbolize different movements of the musical composition.

This preliminary drawing, executed in 1901, was a study for the group of women in the frieze named Die Künste (The Arts). In this part of the mural, located on the ultimate wall, this group of crouching women extend from the bottom to the top of the frieze, on a gold background, like a living pillar. Extending their left arms, the women representing the arts introduce the "Chor der Paradiesesengel" (Choir of Angels from Paradise) whose song and presence surround a culminating couple’s embrace. These final images directly relates to the final chorus of Beethoven’s symphony who’s lyrics, borrowed from “Ode to Joy” by Friedrich von Schiller, sing “Diesen Kuẞ der ganzen Welt! (this kiss to the whole world).”

The delicate pencil and colored crayon lines of this study illustrates Klimt’s mastery as one of the most celebrated artists of his generation. The facial expression of the women also highlights Klimt’s ongoing concern with the accurate representation of sensitivity.

The Beethoven Frieze, unlike the other murals of the fourteenth Vienna Secession, was preserved by one of Klimt’s main patrons, Carl Reininghaus and was then acquired the Lederer family, who, at the t.mes , owned the largest collects ion of Klimt’s paintings. The iconic frieze is now located in the basement of the Vienna Secession.