German Artist Anselm Kiefer Engages In Visceral Dialogue With Van Gogh Blockbuster Exhibition Sprawling Two Amsterdam Museums . (This link opens in a new tab).
By Natasha Gural
Re-imagine the night sky, simultaneously tranquil and disquieting, as straw, gold leaf, wood, wire, and sediment mimic thick, impasto brushstrokes to pay homage to one of art history’s most captivating swirls. The unusual materials, interacting with emulsion, and oil and acrylic paints, borrow from Post-Impressionist exploration of light and color to depict the verisimilitude of nature.
German artist Anselm Kiefer (born 1945) named his work De sterrennacht (The Starry Night) (2019) after Vincent van Gogh’s painting executed from the Dutch master’s east-facing window view during his yearlong stay at the asylum (psychiatric hospital) of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole near Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.
“What you see here is Kiefer working on a very grand scale, using his entire arsenal of materials. The green is created by electrolysis, he’s using a lot of gold right now, and it is really about how he's getting out the movement in the Starry Night in an almost overwhelming way,” Emilie Gordenker, director of the Van Gogh Museum, said during a tour of the exhibition following the previews of TEFAF-Maastricht. “These works are also clearly looking to Van Gogh.”
Van Gogh’s influence permeates Kiefer’s career, and is most evident in this colossal painting, stretching nearly 28 feet long and soaring more than 15 feet high. Sag mir wo die Blumen sind presents a wide range of Kiefer’s work displayed across the Stedelijk Museum – showcasing his early works from the museum’s own collection together for the first time, along with recent paintings and two new installations – and the Van Gogh Museum highlighting his lifelong dialogue with van Gogh.
