Blaues Auge

Did you ever hear of a cemetery where artists design their own tombs? Here at the Blaues Auge, you’ll find just that. Blaues Auge isn’t your typical art gallery. It’s a disused quarry, transformed into a unique Künstler-Nekropole, an artists’ necropolis. The brainchild of artist Harry Kramer, who taught at the Kassel Art College and participated in documenta III, this extraordinary project allows artists of “documenta rank” to create their own tombs before they die. The Blaues Auge artists embrace the natural setting. Their tombs blend seamlessly into the landscape. They become part of the very fabric of the Habichtswald forest at the edge of Kassel, near Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe. Harry Kramer envisioned the Blaues Auge necropolis as a new form of public art, not an exclusive cemetery. He even chose to be anonymously buried here in 1997, without a marked tomb. Currently, there are over ten tombs. Among them are the tombs of E.R. Nele, whose leaning stainless steel houses form a gateway to the Blaues Auge, and Gernot Minke, whose earthen dome offers a unique acoustic experience. You can find the thought-provoking “Kopfstehendes Hohlkörper-Denkmal II” by Timm Ulrichs. It features footprints cast in bronze, sunk into the earth, ready to receive his ashes. Or the intriguing “La vita corre come rivo fluente” by Rune Mields, a mathematical journey through prime numbers. Blaues Auge also houses memorials, not just tombs. There’s a memorial to the two-time documenta director Manfred Schneckenburger and a homage to Harry Kramer by Blalla W. Hallmann. A 1.5 km hiking trail guides you through this open-air museum of tombs, each a testament to the artist’s life and vision. A foundation, originating from Kramer’s private estate and managed by the city of Kassel, oversees the Blaues Auge. A council decides which artists are invited to contribute their work to this evolving landscape of art and remembrance. The Blaues Auge is more than a cemetery. It’s a testament to the enduring power of art and a profound meditation on life, death, and the legacy we leave behind.