Bauhaus Dessau

I recently fulfilled one of my lifelong dreams and visited the holy shrine of design and architecture: The Bauhaus in Dessau. When in 1925 the Bauhaus moved from Weimar to Dessau, Walter Gropius, the then director of the Bauhaus, designed the building and it’s still there today, looking as wonderful as always. In fact it must have been quite the sight back in 1926 when it first opened.

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The main entrance.

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Tiger and Turtle

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When I saw pictures of this a couple of years ago it went straight onto my ‘must see’ list and considering it is in Duisburg, which is only half an hour away from my parents’ house in Germany, it clearly was only a matter of time.

Well, I was in Germany again last weekend and finally made it and it is AMAZING!! This walkable roller coaster is the work of artists Heike Mutter und Ulrich Genth and is built on a mount of rubble dug up by local coal mines (of which there were plenty).

Thankfully it was a miserable day so no-one was around and we had it almost all to ourselves!!

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I know, this is two Museums of the Month in just one day but I just have to tell you about the Wellcome Collection, or how they put it, The free destination for the incurably curious.

It helps that it’s just around the corner from where I live but the Wellcome Collection has yet to disappoint me with any of the exhibitions they’ve put on. I just went to see the incredible Souzou: Outsider Art from Japan, an exhibition of work by artists with mental illness or mental handicaps.

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The above is by Kenichi YAMAZAKI who has been hospitalized for almost 30 years after developing a psychiatric illness while working on construction sites in Tokyo. His drawings look a bit like engineering plans with immaculate detailing. Apparently he now has over 3000 pieces of art.

The exhibition runs until the 30th of June so hurry up, you really don’t want to miss this!! While you’re there, check out their permanent collection too.

Wellcome Collection, 183 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE

Open Tuesday – Sunday