Cette obscure clarté qui tombe des étoiles [the dark light falling from the stars]
![Anselm Kiefer, Cette obscure clarté qui tombe des étoiles [the dark light falling from the stars]](https://www.nationalgalleries.org/sites/default/files/styles/postcard/public/externals/80090.jpg?itok=FJ8SUR8s)
About this artwork
This installation comprises a painting and sculpture displayed together with fragments of lead and glass. The painting's surface is cracked and broken, created using a combination of wood, straw and paint, mixed with clay and shellac. Kiefer’s bookcase is equally damaged. Completely unreadable, the decaying manuscripts perhaps symbolize the destruction of German-Jewish literature during the Nazi books burnings in 1933. The French title, meaning "The dark light that falls from the stars", is taken from 'Le Cid' by Corneille and refers to Kiefer’s relationship to France, which offered freedom from the weight of Germany’s troubled past.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Anselm KieferGerman (born 1945)
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title:Cette obscure clarté qui tombe des étoiles [the dark light falling from the stars]
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date created:1999
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materials:Acrylic paint, oil paint, shellac, earth, sand, wood, paper and glass on 2 canvases, lead, iron, books and other materials
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measurements:470.00 x 400.00 cm; 340.00 x 165.00 x 110.00 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 the Art Fund 2008
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accession number:AR00041
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gallery:
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...
