It will be interesting to see what the reaction is of the art world to our Kiefer exhibition.   In talking last night to a party organised by BNP Paribas, who are sponsors of the exhibition, I was reminded that he came to public prominence in Britain in the early 1980s through the exhibition New Spirit in Painting held at the RA in 1981 which celebrated the return to subject matter in painting, and the belief that painting could and should occupy the realms of literature, philosophy and symbolism.   This idea has become deeply unfashionable without it in any way affecting Kiefer’s public reputation.   So, the question is whether or not Kiefer’s work will have any effect on a new generation of artists to explore, as he has, ideas of history and will respond to the profundity of the work.