Can real love be painted? Gustav Klimt is one of a few artists who has managed to capture the magic and the transcendence of a romantic kiss. In this painting, two life sized figures are entirely draped in shimmering gold. A geometric pattern of black, gray, and white rectangles denotes the man’s body, while an organic circle pattern with wavy, flowing lines denotes the woman’s body. Klimt’s inspiration to incorporate gold leaf were by mosaics he had seen in Ravenna in 1903. The gold gilding that wraps around their heads like a halo, and that envelops their forms, creates a sense of divinity and transcendence that suspends the figures in a golden expense of perfection. All that is visible at the two figures are their faces, their hands, and the woman’s feet. Gold tassels fall over her shins and intertwine with the fertile Earth upon which they kneel. The flowery expanse below them, elegantly ties with the delicate leaf and flower wreaths that crown each of their heads. The woman’s eyes are closed which makes the embrace very central. Her right arm wraps around the man’s neck elegantly hanging on to him. While her left fingers delicately touched his hand. His hands tenderly cup her face as he leans inwards and kisses her cheek. They are melting into one another, surrendering to each other’s enveloping embrace, and becoming one. A worldwide recognizable symbol of love which transcends reality, time, and space. The indeterminate background that resembles a story and timeless cosmos, transports the figures to an otherworldly realm. Klimt’s painting is a mesmerizing mix of symbolism and art nouveau that succeeds in removing the figures from any sense of time space and reality. Therefore, immortalizing their tender embrace.