Anselm Kiefer (German, born 1945) (die Milchstrasse) The Milky Way, 1985-87 Emulsion paint, oil, acrylic, and shellac on canvas with applied wires and lead, 12 1/2 x 18 1/2" In Celebration of the 125th Anniversary of The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, General and Restricted Purchase Funds, 1988

Anselm Kiefer is an artist who believes that art can strongly affect society. His work is often about a theme that many artists from his own country, Germany, were reluctant to talk about: World War II, which resulted in the destruction of 6 million Jewish people and many, many others, by the Nazis, who took over the leadership of Germany in the 1930s. World War II ended with the surrender of Germany and when the United States dropped atomic bombs on Japan in 1945.

Kiefer believes that artists can make society better just as people believed many years ago, during medieval times. In the Middle Ages (the times of knights and castles), people believed that alchemists could change lead or other metals into gold. The magic that alchemists practiced was called alchemy. In The Milky Way, the artist uses lead wires and a real lead funnel. Can you find them? These refer to alchemy, a process that we all know is not really possible. Kiefer does not believe in any specific religion or God, but he does believe in the power of religion in general. Kiefer's hope is that the lead funnel, reaching with lead wires toward the heavens and God, can use this power to transform this war-burned field into a better place. Look at the white slash in the fields, which bears the name of the painting in German. This is where the funnel is pointed.