Bernhard Hoetger - The Plane Tree Grove

Expressionist sculptor Bernhard Hoetger (1874–1949) was a key figure in the Art Nouveau movement in Germany. This volume focuses on the series of extremely influential sculptural works that Hoetger created for the plane tree grove of the Art Nouveau exhibition center Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt. A member of the Darmstadt artists’ colony, Hoetger created more than forty sculptural works for the colony’s final exhibition in 1914, including reliefs, animal sculptures, jug carriers, vases, and more. Exhibited across the entire garden area, the artworks drew on motifs not only from Christian art and the Western tradition, but also on Buddhism, ancient Egyptian poetry, and more—and the result was an outdoor realm that visitors experienced as almost sacred


This beautifully illustrated volume, the first in-depth look at these works in a century, includes new photographs of all the artworks in situ and also details the extensive restoration work they’ve undergone in recent years.

Ralf Beil is General Director of the World Heritage Site Völklinger Hütte since 2020.