Grane

When looking at this painting, I see the skeleton of a horse with the word Grane above it. Grane would be the title of the painting. "The title of this work refers to Brunhilde's horse in the renowned operatic cycle, The Ring, by Richard Wagner. Near the opera's end, Brunhilde, in grief over the murder of the hero Siegfried, makes a funeral for him and rides her horse, Grane, into the flames to join her beloved in death" (moma.org). Moma.org says that much of the power of this image originates from Kiefer's forceful use of the woodcut medium; in the jagged edges of the white areas we sense the artist's bold cutting of the woodblock. I do not quite understand what this means but he uses the wooden background for a reason. The skeleton of the horse could have been burning in a barn, which would have wooden stalls. If one would look closely to the painting, he will see the orange-red tint to the wood. That could represent the flames as well. "The monumental size of this work required thirteen sheets of paper to be joined together and mounted on linen" (moma.org).

Anselm Kiefer produced many pieces of work, just trying to explore his nation’s identity and what he had faced from what happened during World War II. “His imagery contains references to his country's historical and cultural past but also serves as a metaphor for universal suffering, sacrifice, and destruction. He incorporates woodcuts into paintings, groups them together to create works that rival the grand scale of his paintings, or uses them in his many illustrated books” (moma.org). When Kiefer made his art work, he would include a wide range of materials into it. Much of what he would use would be natural resources such as; straw, lead, sand, tar and plants. Another natural resource that he would use would be wood and then with that wood, he would do a technique called woodcut. “The technique of woodcut has a long and distinguished history in German art” (moma.org). One other material that he uses is photographs. “Richard Wagner's opera cycle, The Ring and the tragic fate of its protagonists Siegfried and Brunhilde form the backdrop for Grane. The heroic role of Brunhilde's horse, Grane, is a recurring motif in Kiefer's work” (moma.org).

When looking at this piece of art, no other artwork comes straight to mind. When glancing through the book Movements in Art Since 1945 by Edward Lucie-Smith, I found a piece that resembles Grane quite well. The 1993 piece of art is titled Deep into Russia by Oleg Kulik. It is black and white and has sheep in it and is surrounded by wood. Although it does not convey death, it still resembles Grane. Being very involved with horses, it reminds me of my horse’s, and just pictures of the horse’s skeleton. The word Grane looks like it is engraved into wood, which could be a stall door or something involved with the horse. Out of all the paintings, this one is my favorite because it involves a horse and I can relate to that.

moma.org. 2009. The Collection. 23 Nov. 2009
< http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?object_id=61992>.

Lucie-Smith, Edward. movements in art since 1945. New York: THAMES & HUDSON INC., 1995.