World Heritage Site Application
Hellerau is an important part of the history of the early 20th century. To make this uniqueness more accessible to the public, the World Cultural Heritage application should give the site the attention it deserves.
A site must demonstrate its ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ to earn the title of World Heritage Site. In the case of Hellerau, this lies in the experiment and reform project in the early 20th century, in which social, artistic and economic aspects played an equally important role. The Förderverein Weltkulturerbe Hellerau e.V. (Hellerau World Heritage Site Friends Association) is therefore trying to get the site on the federal government’s proposal list so that it can then be awarded the title of World Heritage Site at international level.
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The street Am Grünen Zipfel,
Architect: Richard Riemerschmid. © Lothar Sprenger
Application as a World Heritage Site
Hellerau is an important part of the history of the early 20th century. In 2010, a private initiative (today Förderverein Weltkulturerbe Hellerau e. V. (Hellerau World Heritage Site Friends Association)) set itself the goal of making this uniqueness more accessible to the public. The World Heritage Site application is intended to secure the attention and care for the site that it deserves. The association publishes on the subject of Hellerau, organises conferences and academic seminars, and takes on a leading role acting as a central point of contact for the entire application process.
A site must demonstrate its ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ to earn the title of World Heritage Site. Each country on the World Heritage Committee can propose candidates to UNESCO. In Germany, the sites designated by each federal state are evaluated by the Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs, selected and summarised on what is known as the federal tentative list. Every year, one of these sites can then submit its application documents to UNESCO in Paris. The association is therefore trying to get the site on the federal government’s proposal list so that it can then be awarded the title of World Heritage Site at international level.
What makes Hellerau so valuable?
In the case of Hellerau, the ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ lies in the experiment and reform project in the early 20th century, in which social, artistic and economic aspects played an equally important role. All aspects of the Lebensreform (life-reform) movement contributed to the success of Hellerau: ecology, physical culture, theatre reform, modern architecture and new design, progressive education and social thinking. The settlement propagated the dawn of a new era, a new concept of culture and a new style of applied and performing arts. Its design language is considered a first move towards functionalism and New Objectivity. The Festspielhaus (Festival Theatre) wrote international theatre history as the first stageless, open theatre building of the modern era. As a result, Hellerau became a pilgrimage centre for Europe’s artistic avant-garde, above all through its realisation of a new theatre and residential architecture.
