Joseph Beuys

with Filzplastik

1981

Not on display

Artist: Joseph Beuys 1921–1986
Original title: mit Filzplastik
Medium: Collage, crayon and ink on paper
Dimensions: Support: 577 × 367 mm
frame: 680 × 525 × 33 mm
Collection: ARTIST ROOMS Tate and National Galleries of Scotland
Acquisition: ARTIST ROOMS Acquired jointly with the National Galleries of Scotland through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Art Fund 2008
Reference: AR00689

Online caption

This collage is typical of many of Beuys's works on paper. Pieced together from diverse scraps of paper, are small sketches, notes and calculations. The drawings and symbols were part of the personal language the artist used in his drawings. At the top of the collage is a plan or diagram, which may relate to the symbols of the elements aluminium and silicon (Al and Si) which appear on several pieces of paper. The sum of money 90,000 DM (Deutschmarks) also appears. Although his work from the 1960s onwards was primarily associated with sculpture and ‘actions’, drawing remained an important part of Beuys's working process, enabling him to capture his thoughts and feelings quickly and easily.