My Favorite SFMOMA Collections

I have been to many museums, exulted or less glamorous, local or overseas.  I savor my memories of many visits to those museums and time to time relive the moments when I encountered a piece made the strongest impression on me.  I am going to write about those museums I have been to, with two pieces from each museum.  These works I pick don't have to be the "best" or the most renown, but they are to be truly my favorites.

Starting with the obvious museum - San Francisco Museum of Modern Arts (SFMOMA).  My favorite of mine at SFMOMA is Die Sechste Posaune (The Sixth Trumpet), Anselm Kiefer (Donaueschingen, Germany, 1945), 1996, painting: emulsion, acrylic, shellac, and sunflower seeds on canvas, 204 3/4 in. x 220 1/2 in. (520.07 cm x 560.07 cm)



I first saw this painting many years ago at SFMOMA and wad struck by the monumentality of this piece.  It is of biblical proportion, and its painful scream was quite overwhelming.  But, the pain was like those of madrigal from the earlier time, still orderly and restraint, like a Passion Oratorio by Bach.

Underneath the black specks, the deserted fields and hills were haunted spot, with eerie beauty, as if to tell us what we have lost, or what we did not deserve.

This is a beautiful but difficult piece to stare at.  It currently is not on display.  My guess is that if people see it too often, they might have lost all their wills to live.


My other favorite collection at SFMOMA is by Max Beckmann (Leipzig, Germany, 1884 - 1950, New York City, New York) - Frau bei der Toilette mit roten und weissen Lilien (Woman at Her Toilette with Red and White Lilies), 1938, Oil on Canvas.

Every time when I visited SFMOMA, I would spend some time with this enchanting Frau. I have always been partial with the German painter Beckmann.  I loved not only his stark vision but his bold yet exquisite execution. I particularly love the way he used the black color to outline object and give them monumental mass.  This Frau is both a typical and an atypical of Beckmann.  It has all the trademarks of his palette, his handling of paints in the bold outlines and thin layers.  However, this quietly melancholic piece is rather quite comforting, comparing to his more enigmatic and/or apocalyptic pieces.  This Frau needs not to be afraid but to be adored.









It is interesting that my favorite works were created by German masters haunted and pained by the ravages of war.  I am afraid that I do share such of their apocalyptic point of view.  But, by admitting my love for the Beckmann above, I think it is fair to say that I still have some hope and love for humanity.


My Favorite Museum Collection Series 

>> My Favorite Museum Collection Series 2: My Favorite De Young Museum Collections

List of My Favorite Artworks in the Museums I've Visited