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Midsummer Night

1980
Not on view
Midsummer Night (or Johannisnacht), the night before the summer solstice, is celebrated in Germany with both pagan and Christian traditions. In one such tradition, the spores of ferns are collected for use in rituals concerning invulnerability and invisibility. Here, Kiefer painted ferns over two cut and pasted photographs of a palette in the artist’s studio. He explained: "The first trees were ferns. They are primal. Charcoal and oil are made out of ferns that existed at the beginning of life. There are many stories and folktales about plants having memories . . . [and] ferns may contain secret knowledge."

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Midsummer Night
  • Artist: Anselm Kiefer (German, born Donaueschingen, 1945)
  • Date: 1980
  • Medium: Gouache and acrylic on cut and pasted gelatin silver prints
  • Dimensions: 22 7/8 x 17 1/2 in. (58.1 x 44.5 cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 1995
  • Object Number: 1995.14.33
  • 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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