First published: 30/03/20.

Claire Bradshaw

Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt

Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt (Inscribed)

Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt by Hubert

This place is right up UNESCO's street, so if the inscription process takes place this year, I should imagine this will almost certainly be successfully inscribed.

It was also a lot more up my street than I expected.  Although this is a relatively small area, we enjoyed strolling amongst the exhibition halls, gardens etc, even though it only lasted around 20 minutes!!  Sadly the main exhibition hall attached to the wedding tower is currently undergoing major restoration work, so is covered in scaffolding.  I liked the Swan Temple particularly.

My favourite part though was the artists houses.  I understand that most are now in private hands, but it would be great if the opportunity arose, for at least one of them to be accessible to the public.  Again Olbrich House is being restored so the exterior tilework is not really visible at this time.  I liked all the houses but the standout one for me is the Behrens House.

Overall I didn't expect the colony to feel so 'complete', so obviously different from its surroundings, and so easy to interpret.  The design ideals represented here are very well preserved in the architecture, and remain authentic despite the disruptions of recent history.

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