A silent testament stands before us. St Hildegard in der Au. This is its story.
St Hildegard in der Au was once a vibrant Roman Catholic parish church in Cologne’s Nippes district. It held its first service in 1961. Architect Stefan Leuer designed this striking building. The church was dedicated to Saint Hildegard of Bingen.
Construction began in 1960. The church was built on a former allotment garden plot. This explains the “in der Au” part of its name. Initially the neighboring St Bonifatius parish oversaw planning. However the new St Hildegard parish took over construction in March 1960. They even partly funded the bell tower themselves.
The building’s design is unique. Its almost square layout features two parabolically rounded corners. A slender circular bell tower stands separately. The parabolic square motif is repeated 530 times in the coffered ceiling. The facade is perforated with small square windows. These windows form a curve mirroring the walls’ parabolic curves. A small niche above the entrance holds a sculpture of Saint Hildegard.
Inside the entrance area splits into a vestibule and a baptistery. The baptismal font sits centrally. The altar area dominates the space. Rows of pews radiate around the raised altar island. A weekday chapel is accessible from the left side of the altar.
The church’s interior was sparsely decorated. This was partly due to financial constraints. The central altar piece features a stone thorny bush and a lamb. This symbolizes the Old Testament sacrifice of Isaac. The artist Klaus Balke also created the tabernacle and the cross.
In 1964 Balke added the Stations of the Cross. Gobelins illustrating a motto of Saint Hildegard decorate the wall behind the altar. Hubert Schaffmeister created the altar and back wall windows. The windows’ colors are white gold and red white blue and green. Jochem Pechau sculpted the Saint Hildegard figure and the baptismal font.
A two-manual organ was installed in 1968. It boasts 14 registers. The church’s three-bell chime was cast in two phases. A final service was held here on September 20 2020. The church is slated for demolition to make way for social housing. The baptismal font now resides in the Evangelical Stephanus Church in Cologne-Riehl. The organ followed shortly after a refurbishment. Before its removal the Sono Kollektiv music group documented the empty church with ambient live music.
St Hildegard in der Au. Though gone its story resonates. It serves as a reminder of a community’s faith and its architectural artistry.