Heroische Sinnbilder [Heroic Symbols]
About this artwork
The 1960s witnessed the emergence of a generation of young Germans who began to confront their country’s recent political history. In this spirit, Anselm Kiefer created a series of photographs that show him giving the Hitler salute in front of various historical monuments and romantic landscapes. For his degree show at Karlsruhe Academy of Fine Arts in 1969, Kiefer arranged the photographs in a book that he ironically titled 'Heroische Sinnbilder (Heroic Symbols)'. He took the title from an article published in the National Socialist Party magazine 'Die Kunst im Deutschen Reich (Art in the German Reich)' in 1943 that discussed the vital importance of art in representing the German heroism of the past to contemporary Germans. Here, Kiefer’s saluting figure appears the same height as the classical ruin in the landscape behind him, ridiculing the Nazis’ delusions of grandeur.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Anselm Kiefer (born 1945) German
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title:Heroische Sinnbilder [Heroic Symbols]
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date created:1969
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materials:Photograph, black and white, on paper
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measurements:63.30 x 83.30 cm
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object type:
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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, 2011
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accession number:AR01171
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gallery:
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subject:
Anselm Kiefer
Anselm Kiefer
The German artist Anselm Kiefer gained prominence in 1969 with a series of photographs called 'Occupations', in which he was pictured giving the Nazi salute in various locations in Europe. This was Kiefer's first attempt to deal with Germany's recent cultural and political history, an ongoing theme...