%C2%A9 Anselm Kiefer
Unternehmen Seelöwe (Operation Sea Lion), 1975
Photographic illustrations with hand-painted oil and acrylic, mounted on cardboard; bound in boardsexpand_more
Gift of Anne S. Daytonexpand_more B.83.1
Not on Viewexpand_more
Anselm Kiefer's monumental artist’s book is a mocking denunciation of Germany's ill-conceived efforts to invade England during World War II (1939-45). This German military action, code named “Operation Sea Lion,” called for a massive fleet of naval forces in a coordinated crossing of the English Channel to overwhelm and defeat British defenses. Deemed unfeasible by the German High Command, the plan was ultimately abandoned by Adolf Hitler. Kiefer’s bathtub wargame reenactments of “Operation Sea Lion” belittle Hitler’s avowed dream of “a thousand year Reich.” The blackened and roughly textured surfaces of the hand-painted pages evoke the immense destruction and degradation of warfare.
Details
- Title
- Unternehmen Seelöwe (Operation Sea Lion)
- Artist Life
- born 1945
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- B.83.1
- Provenance
- Anne S. Dayton, New York, until 1983; given to MIA.
- Curator Approved
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© Anselm Kiefer