Joseph Beuys

Clan

About this artwork

This drawing shows a group (or clan) of figures with the distinctive long ears of a hare. The hare is an animal which reappears frequently in Beuys's work, along with the stag. While the stag was connected to the upper (and male) part of the body, the hare was connected to the female / lower part of the body. It was also linked with the earth - Beuys compared the animal's shaping of the earth when burrowing underground to the process of human thought. Beuys's famous 1961 'action' 'How to explain pictures to a dead hare' featured the artist with his face covered in honey and gold leaf, explaining paintings to the dead animal.

Updated before 2020

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  • artist:
    Joseph Beuys (1921 - 1986) German
  • title:
    Clan
  • date created:
    1958
  • materials:
    Oil paint and watercolour on paper
  • measurements:
    20.70 x 28.50 cm
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Acquired jointly through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Art Fund, 2008
  • accession number:
    AR00107
  • gallery:
  • artwork photographed by:
    Antonia Reeve
This artwork is part of Artist Rooms
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Joseph Beuys

Joseph Beuys