Anselm Kiefer: ELEKTRA

The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania, has unveiled a major new architectural and artistic expansion devoted to a monumental commission by Anselm Kiefer, marking one of the most significant cultural developments in Australia in recent years.

Conceived over more than a decade and realised after four years of construction, the new wing was developed primarily to house Elektra, a towering, multilevel concrete amphitheatre inspired by the artist’s own studio-estate at La Ribaute in southern France. Kiefer’s neo-expressionist language — at once visceral, sculptural and expansive — is embedded in the very structure of the space, inviting visitors into an environment that is as physical as it is psychological.

The project’s scale reflects the evolving ambitions of MONA’s founder David Walsh, who has described how an early encounter with Kiefer’s La Ribaute profoundly shaped his vision for the museum’s future. In his essay My Conversion, Walsh reflects on this transformative experience and the long-held desire to bring that intensity of experience to Tasmania, a vision realised here in collaboration with MONA’s artistic director Olivier Varenne.

Originally envisaged on a more modest budget, the new wing’s scope expanded over time — ultimately surpassing AUD 100 million — as the ambition of the work and the museum’s commitment to all-encompassing artistic environments grew. This new addition joins Kiefer’s earlier permanent installation Sternenfall / Shevirath ha Kelim (2007) at MONA and further cements the artist’s deep, ongoing relationship with the institution. Through Olivier Varenne’s curatorial leadership, this suite of works positions MONA at the forefront of international contemporary art practice while continuing its tradition of immersive, boundary-defying artistic encounters.