Kunststätte Bossard is an

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

Gesamtkunstwerk A ''Gesamtkunstwerk'' (, literally 'total artwork', translated as 'total work of art', 'ideal work of art', 'universal artwork', 'synthesis of the arts', 'comprehensive artwork', or 'all-embracing art form') is a work of art that makes use of al ...

'', sometimes also referred to as a visionary environment, located in the town of

Jesteburg Jesteburg is a municipality in the district of Harburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approximately 25 km south of Hamburg, and 6 km east of Buchholz in der Nordheide. Jesteburg is also the seat of the ''Samtgemeinde'' ("co ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It was created by Swiss artist (1874–1950) and his wife, Jutta Kroll-Bossard (1903–1996). It combines architecture, sculpture, painting and garden design.

History

Johann Michael Bossard was born in

Zug , neighboring_municipalities = Cham, Baar, Walchwil, Steinhausen, Unterägeri , twintowns = Fürstenfeld (Austria), Kalesija (Bosnia-Herzegowina) Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; french: Zoug it, Zugo r ...

, Switzerland in 1874. He was apprenticed as a builder of tiled stoves before studying art at Munich and Berlin. In 1907, he became professor for sculpture at the ''Kunstgewerbeschule'' in Hamburg (today the ''

Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg The ''Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg (HFBK Hamburg)'' is the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg. It dates to 1767, when it was called the ''Hamburger Gewerbeschule''; later it became known as ''Landeskunstschule Hamburg''. The main build ...

''), a position he held until his retirement in 1944. Jutta Krull, 29 years his junior, was his student before they married in 1926. Before 1912, Bossard worked on various pieces of public art, e.g. the façade ornaments of the townhall of Berlin-Treptow (see ), the clock face on the

Hamburg Stock Exchange The Hamburg Stock Exchange (german: link=yes, Hamburger Börse) is the oldest stock exchange in Germany. It was founded in 1558 in the Free and Hanseatic city of Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 ...

or the sculptures on the '' Völkerkundemuseum'' of Hamburg. In 1911, Bossard bought a property in the

Lüneburg Heath Lüneburg Heath (german: Lüneburger Heide) is a large area of heath, geest, and woodland in the northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover and Bremen a ...

, near Jesteburg, and – after the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

– started to focus his artistic work on this place. On three hectares of wooded heath, he had a number of structures built to his designs over the next decades, starting with the ''Atelierhaus'' in the style of ', where he lived. All the interiors, including furniture, paintings, sculptures, ceramics, carpets and tableware were eventually also designed by Bossard himself. In 1926, work began on the ''Kunsttempel''. The gardens around the buildings were also included in the ''Gesamtkunstwerk''. Bossard was loath to market or publicise his works. Only after his death in 1950 did his widow strive to make his oevre of over 7,000 works better known.

Reception

Bossard's work was heavily influenced by

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...

. It is deemed unique by art historians, on a par with the expressionist art of '' Böttcherstrasse'' at

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

or the ''

Chilehaus The Chilehaus (, "Chile House") is a ten-story office building in Hamburg, Germany. It is located in the Kontorhaus District. It is an exceptional example of the 1920s Brick Expressionism style of architecture. This large angular building is locat ...

'' at Hamburg. In 2012, the ''Kunststätte'' was awarded the "Europa Nostra"-price for the preservation of cultural heritage by the European Union. The site features regularly in guide books to the Lüneburg Heath region.

Today

Jutta Bossard died in 1996 after the ''Kunststätte'' had been transferred to the foundation ''Stiftung Kunststätte Johann und Jutta Bossard'' in 1995. Today, the foundation continues to operate the site. The ''Kunststätte'' is open to the public and offers art classes, guided tours, readings, plays and exhibitions. File:Kunststätte Bossard Kunsttempel.jpg, ''Kunsttempel'' (temple of arts) File:Kunststätte Bossard Detail.jpg, Detail from the exterior wall of the ''Kunsttempel'' File:Kunststätte Bossard Garden.jpg, Sculptures in the garden File:Kunststätte Bossard Odin.jpg, Self-portrait/sculpture of Odin in the ''Eddasaal'' of the Atelierhaus File:Kunststätte Bossard Wall.jpg, Wall painting in the ''Eddasaal'' of the Atelierhaus

References

External links

Official website

Listing of printed works by Bossard

Entry on Bossard in SIK Lexicon of Swiss Art
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kunststatte Bossard Art museums and galleries in Germany Harburg (district) Lüneburg Heath Museums in Lower Saxony Visionary environments