Anselm Kiefer is a profound German painter and sculptor who harnesses dynamic materials such as ash, straw, clay, shellac, and lead to invoke a rich myriad of philosophical, cultural, and literary references. Shared experiences and vivid memories of German history, including the atrocities of the Holocaust, as well as Kabbalah mysticism, Old and New Testament inquiries, Norse mythology and more culminate in spirited and poetic masterpieces.
Born in Donaueschingen, Germany as World War II was coming to an end, Kiefer was a student of law and romance languages before immersing himself in the School of Fine Arts at Freiburg im Breisgau and the Art Academy in Karlsruhe. Throughout the artist’s compelling oeuvre, a powerful dialogue on Germany’s post-war identity unfolds, unearthing the dark shadows left behind by the Third Reich. Interweaving a wide range of media, including paintings, sculptures, literature, drawings, installations, photographs, and more, Kiefer examines the enigmatic complexities of life, death, and the cosmos throughout history. Reviving lost images of the past for investigation has led to revelatory understanding and pivotal new thought on the tender subjects of memory, myth, and sanctity.
Large-scale works deftly reflect the colossal topics in which the visionary fearlessly delves into, submerging viewers in grim historical encounters and fresh perspectives. Within his singular pieces, captivating details such as the names and signatures of iconic people and places of the past abound as encoded, magical symbols. In turn, a meaningful processing of the catastrophes of history transpires for both artist and audience through the techniques and movements of Neo-Expressionism and New Symbolism.
Currently based in Paris, Kiefer’s creative projects have been exhibited and collected by the leading galleries and museums of the world. Legendary presentations include “Anselm Kiefer au Louvre” at the Musée du Louvre, Paris (2007); “Shevirat Hakelim” at Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel (2011); Royal Academy of Arts, London (2014); “l’alchimie du livre” at Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris (2015); Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris (2015); “Kiefer Rodin” at Musée Rodin, Paris (2017, traveled to the Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, through 2018); “For Velimir Khlebnikov—Fates of Nations” at State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg (2017); and “Provocations” at The Met Breuer, New York (2017).
Last year, Gagosian presented Kiefer’s exhibition “Exodus” at Marciano Art Foundation in Los Angeles, where the artist’s monumental, tactile canvases explored ideas of loss and redemption. Mixing paint with elements like terra-cotta, rope, fabric, metal, electrolysis sediment, gold leaf, and found matter and objects—the abject and the exalted—Kiefer’s encompassing compositions were suggestive of allegorical narratives and snippets of otherworldly connections.
This year, the artist’s “Fallen Angels” show at Palazzo Strozzi in Florence considered the celestial beings expelled from heaven due to their rebellion against God. This emblematic concept, akin to humanity’s own narrative, served as the keen focal point for Kiefer’s exhibition. Featuring twenty-five works, including both historical pieces and new creations, the showcase included an immersive installation comprising 60 canvases of varying formats.
