German artist Anselm Kiefer created his painting “Groβe Eisenfaust Deutschland” (“Great Iron Fist Germany”) in 1979. This painting uses the impasto technique with blurry abstract shapes. There have been various interpretations as to what they actually represent, for example, burnt soil or wooden anti-tank barriers. The artist used chaotic brown, blue and red brush strokes to convey the feeling of a catastrophic disaster.

The painting’s name is the key to understanding its meaning. The vivid chaos on the canvas symbolizes World War II and its consequences — the war scorched the earth of battlegrounds, destroyed towns, and traumatized an entire generation.

The artist dedicated his works to the history of Germany. He used the imagery of Nibelung tales, the Nazi philosophy, the poetry of German Romanticism, as well as classical music.

“Great Iron Fist Germany” is part of a series dedicated to Russian futurist poet Velimir Khlebnikov. Kiefer has been an admirer of Khlebnikov’s work and dedicated his paintings to the poet for decades. In one of his interviews, Kiefer told a story of how he first discovered the art of the Russian poet,

Anselm Kiefer was born in March 1945, close to the end of World War II. He grew up in Karlsruhe, in the south-west of Germany. As a young man, he studied literature, law, painting, took photographs and created book illustrations.

In 1969, Kiefer had his first solo exhibition at the Karlsruhe Gallery. Later, he participated in the Venice Biennale and in 2017, his exhibition “Anselm Kiefer, for Velimir Khlebnikov” was demonstrated at the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

In his works, Kiefer uses not only oil, but also sand, straw, lead, tar, and wood. Some of his installations look like organized tower or house ruins.

Nowadays, Kiefer lives and works in Germany and France. He creates his works in a giant studio that is located in an abandoned factory building surrounded by empty workshops, bunkers, and landfills.