Graphite on paper
Tate Collection
Works with images
General Collection
ARTIST ROOMS
National Heritage Memorial Fund
Art Fund
Collection
<a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/joseph-beuys-747" aria-label="More by Joseph Beuys" data-gtm-name="header_link_artist" data-gtm-destination="page--artist">Joseph Beuys</a>
Angel Whale
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
abstraction
angel
animals: fish and aquatic life
figure
from recognisable sources
mysticism
religion and belief
spirituality
universal religious imagery
whale
paper unique graphite
Angel Whale
support: 298 × 414 mm
frame: 674 × 541 mm
<a href="/search?gid=999999788" data-gtm-name="tombstone_link_bequest" data-gtm-destination="list-page--search-results">ARTIST ROOMS</a>
Acquired jointly with the National Galleries of Scotland through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the <a href="/search?gid=999999967" data-gtm-name="tombstone_link_bequest" data-gtm-destination="list-page--search-results">National Heritage Memorial Fund</a> and the <a href="/search?gid=999999968" data-gtm-name="tombstone_link_bequest" data-gtm-destination="list-page--search-results">Art Fund</a> 2008
<p>Beuys's depictions of fish and sea creatures are an extension of his lifelong interest in animals. In combining angel and whale, he brings together the heavens and the depth of the sea: an intangible spirit crossed with an enormous mammal. Beuys often turned animals into gods. He wrote: "Animals are in reality also angelic beings. They speak of a realm above human beings, of a spiritual dimension, contained within people themselves". Although the hook shape suggests physical danger for the whale, it may also refer to the ancient tribal custom of attaching fish hooks to the mouth and nostrils of a dead person in order to catch the soul as it escapes from the body.</p>

Online caption
2009-04-16T00:00:00
online-caption
ONLINE_CAPTION
abstraction angel animals: fish and aquatic life figure from recognisable sources mysticism religion and belief spirituality universal religious imagery whale