Article: The man who made the Brit Art monster; At last - a forthcoming exhibition at Tate Modern will be the first serious survey in Britain of the most influential artist of the later 20th century, the German Joseph Beuys.

Byline: BRIAN SEWELL

I AM tempted to liken Joseph Beuys to Leonardo da Vinci, for both were much more than ordinary artists and, in a conventional sense, much less. Both have become creatures of myth: Beuys dubbed alchemist and shaman, Leonardo an engineer and scientist too far in advance of the available technology.

Both were devout Catholics turned doubters, both were philosophers, both Plinyan enquirers into the natural world and both were capable of practical jokes. Both were, early in their lives, physically beautiful and both developed the cult of the persona for adoring followers. Both were the victim of accident that formed them as men and ...

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