In Anselm Kiefer’s Pasiphaë, a bull emerges powerfully from a rugged surface of cracked earth and decayed foliage. Executed between 1994 and 2010, the German artist draws upon one of the most compelling Greek myths, the story of Pasiphaë. As the wife of King Minos of Crete, Pasiphaë is cursed by the god Poseidon to fall in love with a magnificent bull after her husband disrespects the god. In her obsessive desire, Pasiphaë orders the craftsman Daedalus to build a hollow wooden cow that allows her to physically unite with the bull. From this union Minotaur is born, a monstrous creature with the body of a man and the head of a bull, who becomes a symbol of the dark and uncontrollable forces unleashed by human foolishness and divine will. Tangled branches and roots twist through the bull, as if the animal was emerging from the earth itself, full of raw, primal energy. The powerful bull presents both Pasiphaë’s unnatural impulse and the forces beyond human control. By recurring to Pasiphaë’s myth, Kiefer captures the timeless conflict between civilization and the primal forces that drive humans.

Kiefer, among the most influential contemporary artists, has long been revered for his ability to take grand historical and mythological themes and render them with a sense of urgency and visceral emotion. Pasiphaë is an extraordinary example of how Kiefer combines subject matter with texture and material to create a bridge between the ancient and the modern, the fantastical and the real. His ability to create layered, physically imposing canvases is on full display here, and the work fully draws the viewer into the weight of the myth. This work serves as a striking reminder of the artist’s masterful ability to transform ancient stories into contemporary reflections on the human condition.

Kiefer’s exploration of mythological themes has earned him critical acclaim and prestigious exhibitions throughout his career, such as Anselm Kiefer: Mythologies (1984) at the Art Institute of Chicago, where he used Greek, Norse, and Christian mythology to explore complex questions of history and collective memory. And more recently in his solo exhibition Anselm Kiefer: Questi scritti, quando verranno bruciati, daranno finalmente un po’ di luce (2022) at the Palazzo Ducale in Venice, where his work deeply engaged with classical mythology, particularly focusing on the destructive and regenerative aspects of myths such as the fall of Troy and cycles of creation and destruction. Kiefer’s ongoing exploration of myths over many years highlights their personal importance to him, and their significance in his oeuvre. Pasiphaë thus stands as a defining piece of Kiefer’s career.