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Astral Snake

1980–85
Not on view
By 1980 Kiefer’s drawings, like his paintings, began to manifest a complex, near-alchemical approach to materials that included the use of lead, shellac, and even sand over torn and pasted photographs. Their subjects are drawn from the artist’s broad-ranging interests in history, philosophy, poetry, and mythology. In Astral Snake, Kiefer associated the encircling serpent (a carefully torn photograph of a bamboo plant), which hovers against a starry night sky, with the Gnostic image of the Ouroboros, a snake biting its own tail that connotes infinity or a circular concept of time.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Astral Snake
  • Artist: Anselm Kiefer (German, born Donaueschingen, 1945)
  • Date: 1980–85
  • Medium: Torn and pasted gelatin silver print, shellac, and watercolor on gelatin silver print
  • Dimensions: 23 3/8 x 29 1/8 in. (59.4 x 74 cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 1995
  • Object Number: 1995.14.28
  • Rights and Reproduction: © Anselm Kiefer
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

More Artwork

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
Your Golden Hair, Margarete, Anselm Kiefer German, Watercolor, gouache, and acrylic on paper
Your Golden Hair, Margarete
Anselm Kiefer
1980
Wild Emperor, Anselm Kiefer German, Watercolor and acrylic on paper
Wild Emperor
Anselm Kiefer
1975

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