Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I is a painting by Gustav Klimt. Klimt used gold in his painting. In mid-1903 Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer commissioned Klimt to paint a portrait of his wife; he wished to give the piece to Adele's parents as an anniversary present that October.

Klimt’s use of gold was inspired by a journey he had made to Italy in 1903. When he visited Ravenna, he saw the Byzantine mosaics in the Church of San Vitale. Erhold said. “For Klimt, the flatness of the mosaics and their lack of perspective and depth enhanced their golden brilliance.