Anselm Kiefer
"German artist Anselm Kiefer (b. 1945) has produced some of the
most lyrical and engaging works of the contemporary period.
His paintings ... are monumental in scale, thereby commanding
immediate attention. On further inspection the works draw
viewers to the agitated surface, made more complex by the
addition of materials such as straw and lead. Kiefer's
paintings ... have thickly encrusted surfaces. It is not
just the impressive physicality of Kiefer's paintings that
accounts for his work's impact, however. His images
function on a mythological or metaphorical level, as well as on
a historically specific one. Kiefer's works of the 1970's
and 1980's often involved a reexamination of German history,
particularly the painful Nazi era of 1920 - 1945, and evoke the
feeling of despair. Kiefer believes Germany's
participation in World War II and the
Holocaust left permanent
scars on the souls of all humanity."- Gardner's
Art Through The Ages,
11th edition, Vol. II, pp. 1115 - 1116
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