My favourite artist of the month is Anselm Kiefer. A German artist who creates paintings and monumental installations with crusted surfaces, incorporating, lead, concrete, ash, acid, earth, glass and gold, broken glass, oil, emulsion, shellac, acrylic and raw materials from nature.

I particularly like Kiefer’s ambitious project of transforming an old derilict silk factory in La Ribaute France into a monumental studio art complex where he created his monumental works. He dug out underground chambers, tunnels, to create living and working spaces  set amongst strange, reinforced, concrete towers and bunkers, woods and caves. There was even a crypt, an amphitheatre and underground pool.

A trailer from the movie “Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow” about Kiefer’s last days at the studio.

Robert Hughes on Anselm Kiefer

A record of an assistant’s time with Anselm Kiefer from his studio in Barjac. This was in 1999 -2000.