Worpswede. A place between memory and departure

“ Worpswede is a place where art permeates everyday life and enriches it.”

– Bernhard Hoetger -

Fog lies over the fields. The birches stand out as bright stripes against the gray sky – the same birches, the same moors, the same paths that brought a small group of artists here more than a hundred years ago. They wanted to escape the confines of the academies, away from rigid rules. They were looking for a place where art could be reimagined – and they found it in Worpswede.

Here, images were created that captured the essence of the landscape: melancholic, vast, full of silence, yet narrative. The artists' colony became a symbol of a new perspective on the world, of an art that concerned itself not only with aesthetics, but with life itself. But every movement carries the risk of eventually becoming nothing more than history.

Today, the names are familiar. The works hang in museums, books tell of their era, and Worpswede is a household name in art history. But what does this mean for the present?

Is Worpswede still a place of art – or just a monument to its own past?

The world has changed. Art has changed. But one question remains: Is there still room for something new?

An art venue cannot survive solely on its past. It is not a museum, but a process. It thrives not on what once was, but on what is emerging. Worpswede has proven that it can be a magnet for creativity. But will it remain so in the future?

It 's not about preserving the old or seeking the new at all costs. It's about carrying forward the idea of ​​Worpswede – the idea that art doesn't exist in isolation, but is interwoven with the world. That it transforms spaces, opens perspectives, and poses questions.

Perhaps it's time not just to look back, but to look forward. To see who works here today, whose voices need to be heard now. Because the artists who came here once didn't want to write history—they wanted to shape their time.

This task still exists today.

Art in the shadows – who talks about today?

The stories of Vogeler, Modersohn-Becker, and Mackensen are well documented, and their works hang in museums. But what about today?

The artists' colony continues to exist, but is no longer a closed movement. Worpswede is no longer a village of painters, but a place where different art forms meet: painting, sculpture, photography, performance, film. There are studios, small galleries, and workshops. Artists live and work here, experiment, exhibit, and connect with the world. But who knows them? Who talks about them?

Worpswede is almost invisible in the mainstream media. The focus is on the past, as if time had stood still here around 1900. Yet so much is happening that is hardly noticed beyond the village borders. New artistic

Approaches emerge, international artists find inspiration here – but their stories often remain hidden.

The challenge is not only to create new art, but also to make it visible. How does an artist in Worpswede reach his audience today? How does an art venue that isn't located in Berlin or Hamburg assert itself?

Added to this is a completely different reality: Worpswede is no longer just a place for art, but also a tourist attraction. People come to see the "artists' village," but often without interest in what is being created here. How do you prevent art from becoming a mere backdrop? How does it remain a living process and not postcard romanticism?

Many who work here face the same question: How can a place with so much artistic history also be a place of the future? How can art remain independent, experimental, and courageous here? What spaces does it need? What support? And who is actually listening?

There are many unanswered questions. But perhaps that is precisely where the opportunity lies. Worpswede has reinvented itself time and again. It was never just a  A place for a specific kind of art, never just a movement. It was a laboratory, an experiment. And perhaps that's the most important idea to preserve: that art isn't finished here. That it's not just shown here, but made. And that it's worth talking about.

Why this magazine?

It's not just about this one magazine. It's about visibility. About the awareness that art doesn't only exist where it's loudly advertised. A place like Worpswede, shaped by a long history and a vibrant present, deserves to be heard – beyond its borders. Art doesn't emerge in silence; it needs resonance, dialogue, and publicity.

We need more reports, more discussions, more voices speaking about what's happening here. Because art lives not only from those who create it, but also from those who see it, who engage with it, who carry it forward. Worpswede has never been a closed space, but always a place of exchange—and that's exactly how it should remain.

-