Anselm Kiefer

« Celan does not merely contemplate nothingness, he has experienced it, lived through it. ». Anselm Kiefer, June 2021

Fifteen years after inaugurating the Monumenta series at the Grand Palais in 2007, Anselm Kiefer is the first artist to realize a new project that engages with the entire space of the Grand Palais Éphémère, at the invitation of the Rmn – Grand Palais.

With Pour Paul Celan, Anselm Kiefer continues his work on European memory, in which France and Germany are key players. In this exhibition, sculptures, installations and 19 large-scale canvases interact with the elusive poetry of the great German-language poet Paul Celan. Paul Celan’s work has been a constant presence in Anselm Kiefer’s paintings since his adolescence, when he discovered the poem ‘‘Todesfuge’’ (‘‘Death Fugue’’). It continues to still be so with this group of recent paintings. This dialogue has intensified in recent years, and particularly in 2020 during the time of lockdown.

This exhibition is organized by the Réunion des Musées Nationaux – Grand Palais in partnership with the Thaddaeus Ropac Gallery.

In association with the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2022

Listen to the visit booklet in audio version :