This early garden village was built between 1909 and
1933 as the first official settlement supported by the German Garden City Society.
Originally set up as a progressive community it is still a much sought-after
place of residence within easy reach of Dresden by tram.
On the old road between Dresden and Moritzburg the old
buildings of the German Werkstätten suddenly come into view as the greenery
open up in a vista. This factory comprises of a series of buildings designed as
one complex. Within several small manufactures of furniture and artisanal workshops
found space. The whole was set up as a collective with each skilled worker
working together and exchanging ideas when needed. The idealism that created
this complex is still evident today in the photovoltaic panels on the roof.
At the heart of the complex still lies a large cobbled
courtyard. Furniture production is now in a modern factory across the road; the
old workshops are now leased to artists and small creative businesses.
The Deutscher Werkstätten were the raison d’être for a
new garden village satellite of Dresden to be developed in this location. The buildings
are designed in a vernacular style referencing farm buildings, but at the same
time creating a complex that is recognisably not agricultural. The design with
many connected volumes creates the sensation of a much smaller operation than
this complex actually housed.
Some of the houses in the western section were built
in wood, also referencing vernacular German architecture. Split logs are used to
great effect in cladding panels. The window frames and wooden shutters contrast
nicely both in texture and colour. Although each house was built to the same basic
plan, each dwelling has an individual appeal through the detailing and the use
of colour.
In most places the houses are mixed with several types
creating a varied streetscape. Different types of cladding, different roof
pitches and different paint colours all ad to the diversity along the streets.
Where possible the original woodland was retained, as the aim was to reconnect
residents with nature.
There is a mix of buildings in wood and in brick with
rendered walls. All houses are set in ample gardens. Some houses are quite
close to the street -where there are remnants of the woodland on the slope- others
are set back further to create a greener streetscape with large front gardens.
In some sections all the houses are built in brick
with rendered walls. The render is always a shade of soft yellow or cream. This
gives the whole a sense of unity. The housing itself is individual and was
designed in a vernacular idiom.
Around a natural well an ornamental pond was built to
provides a natural focal point in this section of Hellerau. A pond near the top
of the slope feels rather artificial though. From the pond one can glimpse the
buildings around. This again reinforces that sense of nature being omnipresent
in Hellerau.
The streets in the primary section near the
Werkstätten are lined with terraced housing. This is the norm in German garden
villages and in sharp contrast to the preference for cottages and linked
semidetached properties in short rows advocated by English architects of the
Garden City Movement. The long rows create an image similar to German village
streets. Note that the houses for workers lack a front garden.
Most streets in Hellerau were given a gentle curve so
the end could never be seen from the start of the street. Everywhere the
architects favoured rhythm over variety in type. So often the houses along a
street are all similar, sometimes with variations in the detailing.
In most streets the principles of urban planning by
artistic means along the lines of Camillo Sitte are put into practice. The
building line is given subtle variations, creating room for small front garden
along a section of a long street. Also a green verge planted with trees is part
of the layout of some residential streets. The buildings on each street were
designed by one of a group of architects. The buildings al have a certain individuality,
but also create a sense of unity through a conscious use of vernacular design
features.
The street leading up to the central Market Square
shows all of the design features of Sitte-esque design and planning. The basic
layout is varies little, but the dwellings are detailed with a variation in
roof height, roof shape, window treatment. Also shifts in building line are
used to create sections along the street creating visual interest and a more
varied sensation of space and place.
The central square is still used for an open air
market once a week. It is also used for community gatherings and a festival.
For large crowds, however, the Festival Hall was built. The buildings around
the market are higher than those in the residential streets and contain shops
on the ground floor and apartments above. The buildings are 4 storeys with
additional bedrooms up in the attic space.
The bakery is one of the amenities that were concentrated
around the central public space. This building with soft ochre render and blue
shutters, windows and doors differs only slightly from the residential
buildings (these have mostly green shutters and doors). The design aesthetic is
again vernacular in character. A covered walk with arches is a feature imported
from Italy into Germany in the late medieval period. It is used to great effect
here, but also has a practical reason in the rainy climate.
Further up the slope from the central square large
detached and semidetached properties line the short streets. The design is in
keeping with the blocks around the market square and less individualistic than
the villas in the western section.
The streets leading towards the third section -the
section north of the thoroughfare that was planned as part of this garden
village- all have low village-like buildings in long terraces. In some places
(semi)detached houses are used on corners to create visual interest. All houses
have wooden window shutters and where there are front gardens the garden fence
was part of the total design.
Where streets meet the corners are given extra
emphasis by rotating the corner block 45 degrees. Also the use of variable roof
shapes is very clear on this corner. Sections with gable ends break up the roof
surface and emphasise the corners of each block. Where this is a semidetached
block of 2 the gable ends are adjacent; in short terraces the gable ends are
further apart.
The same aesthetic is carried through north of the
thoroughfare with curved streets and white fences edging the small front
gardens. The houses have the same gable ends on each corner dwelling in the
row.
Some streets in the northern section are rather
straight with a kink at either end. The ends of the long terraces protrude to
emphasise the beginning and end of the street. Gable end again are used to
create rhythm and divide the long rows up into sections.
The buildings have vernacular details in the design.
Short porches protrude from the main mass of the row of houses. Each porch has
a short tiled roof. All windows have window shutters. The little railing along
the gutter is typical for German buildings in areas with many trees and heavy
snowfall. Some building have a side entrance. Here one with a porch that backs
onto a neighbouring building with a building line that is not set back.
The Festspielhaus (Festival Thetre) was bult in 1911
on the edge of Hellerau. It is built as a formal ensemble with a central theatre
building behind a large cobbles square. The entrance on the other side is flanked
by two low buildings that housed workshops, storage and a small café. The
theatre was an important centre for experimental theatre and expressive dance
prior to 1933. A restauration was started in 2006. The lower galleries flanking
the entrance still need some work done, but the central building has been
brought back to life.
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