Man Lying with Branch

1971

Not on view

Kiefer was inspired to produce this watercolor by historical depictions of trees emerging from human forms, especially an illustration from the fourteenth-century Ashburn Manuscript housed in the Laurentian Library in Florence. This medieval image, which is concerned with rebirth through death, is one of the sources of Kiefer’s interest in alchemy. The watercolor presents a naked man lying on the ground and holding a lifeless branch that emerges from his bloody abdomen. Made on the occasion of Kiefer’s marriage, the drawing is also dedicated to his new wife; placed below the man’s body, the dedication "Anselm for Julia" furthers the sense of transformation involved in life’s passage.

Artwork Details

Title: Man Lying with Branch
Artist: Anselm Kiefer (German, born Donaueschingen, 1945)
Date: 1971
Medium: Watercolor and opaque watercolor on paper
Dimensions: 9 3/8 x 10 7/8 in. (23.8 x 27.6 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Gift of Cynthia Hazen Polsky, in memory of her father, Joseph H. Hazen, 2000
Object Number: 2000.96.1
Rights and Reproduction: © Anselm Kiefer
Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

More Artwork

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Morgenthau Plan, Anselm Kiefer German, Acrylic, emulsion, oil, and shellac on inkjet prints mounted on canvas — Morgenthau Plan
Anselm Kiefer
2012

Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom, Anselm Kiefer German, Gouache, sand, ash and charcoal on two torn and pasted photographs — Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom
Anselm Kiefer
2000

Autumn Forest, Anselm Kiefer German, Watercolor, opaque watercolor, and graphite on papers — Autumn Forest
Anselm Kiefer
1970

Wild Emperor, Anselm Kiefer German, Watercolor and acrylic on paper — Wild Emperor
Anselm Kiefer
1975

Brünnhilde's Death, Anselm Kiefer German, India ink, watercolor, and acrylic on joined paper — Brünnhilde's Death
Anselm Kiefer
1976

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