Anselm Kiefer's College de France Lectures Published

Éditions du Regard has published 'Anselm Kiefer, L'art survivra à ses ruines', a bilingual French-English volume collecting the artist's lectures at the Collège de France from 2010-2011, where he held the Chair of Artistic Creation. In these talks, Kiefer emphasizes the personal nature of his reflections, questioning the impossibility of defining art through language: 'It is impossible to grasp the character of art through the Word.' He draws connections between his own works and references from artists, thinkers, and poets including Rimbaud, Rilke, Paul Celan, Ingeborg Bachmann, and Victor Hugo. Kiefer describes artistic creation as 'a constant back-and-forth between nothing and something' and 'an attempt to actualize the mystery that connects our world to the beyond.' The final lecture focuses on Barjac, his vast property in southern France where many of his works were created. The book includes analyses that link his literary references to his lead sunflowers, giant open books, and chaotic fields ravaged by fire, time, and rain.