Elisabeth von Österreich

In Elisabeth von Österreich Anselm Kiefer has poured, pulled and brushed lead over a black and white photograph, creating a rich surface. This work is one of an important series based on Richard Wagner's epic operatic cycle, Ring of the Nibelung, which recounts the ancient Teutonic legend of Siegfried and Brunhilde. Siegfried, after rescuing and marrying Brunhilde and having watched her sacrifice her supernatural powers for the sake of her love, succumbs to his desire for fame and adventure and is tricked into drinking a poison that causes him to forget his vows for his wife. Near the end of the opera Brunhilde seeks revenge, but at the point of her husband's murder she discovers they have both been deceived. Grieving for her beloved, she constructs a huge funeral pyre for Siegfried and rides her horse Grane into the flames.

The figure of Brunhilde has taken many guises in Kiefer's art and the artist often portrayed his wife, Julia, as the heroine. Frequently intertwining the legend with historical figures and events, in the present work Kiefer depicts Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Heralded as a great beauty of her time the empress also met with a tragic demise, having been assassinated by an anarchist. This work, like others is a continuation of Kiefer's investigation of themes of love and idealism, but also serves as a metaphor for universal suffering, sacrifice and destruction.