Close to the city quarter Harleshausen of Kassel, Germany you can find an artificial lake in an old quarry: the Blauer See (‘blue lake’). It is a nice lake in a wavy forest, but it is especially interesting as the area surrounding it is a special cemetery – for artists whose works are shown at the documenta art exhibition. A round course leads you to the graves and future graves of the artists. The graves are designed and created while the owners are still living. Everybody participating in this collective artwork agrees on being buried there later.
The cemetery was the idea of Harry Kramer who financed the realization and who is also buried here (without an artwork or marked location). Now a foundation cares about the project and decides which artists will be invited to find their eternal peace at this special place. A precondition is that the art works do not receive any maintenance – that is why this place looks a bit abandoned. Buried here are:
- Harry Kramer (1997, anonymous)
- Blalla W. Hallmann (1997, painting)
- Fritz Schwegler (2014, sarcophagus)
- Werner Ruhnau (2015, theatre)
- Karl Oskar Blase (2016, eye)
- Heinrich Brummack (2018, bird bath)
Already prepared are the ‘monuments’ for:
- Gunter Demnig (‘Circuitus‘)
- Ugo Dossi (steel plates)
- Rune Mields (‘La vita corre come rivo fluente‘)
- Timm Ulrichs (footprints under glass)
A wonderful place in the forest and a good extension to the Museum für Sepulkralkultur on the Weinberg.
Künstler-Nekropole
Harleshausen
Kassel
Germany
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