Artists' Colony in Darmstadt, art colony on Mathildenhöhe hill in Darmstadt, Germany

The Artists' Colony in Darmstadt is an art settlement with buildings, gardens, and exhibition spaces on Mathildenhöhe hill in the city center. The houses display Art Nouveau architecture with clean lines and are connected by green spaces designed for leisurely walks.

A grand duke founded this art settlement in 1899 to promote crafts and new design ideas. The artists who gathered here created innovative buildings and works until 1914 that set new standards for how spaces could be designed.

The colony's motto, "Mein Hessenland blühe und in ihm die Kunst" ("My Hessian land shall flourish and in it, art"), expressed the aim of linking art with craft to revive the Grand Duchy's economy. The first exhibition in 1901, "A Document of German Art", opened on 15 May with a festival devised by Peter Behrens and drew attention far beyond Darmstadt, though it closed in October with a large financial loss.

The site sits on a hill and is easily reached on foot; sturdy shoes help on the paths between buildings. Several exhibition houses can be visited individually, so you can decide how long to stay based on your interests.

The Ernst Ludwig House was built as a shared studio, with a meeting room painted by Paul Bürck and three studios on each side. Above the entrance, an inscription by Hermann Bahr reads that the artist should show his world, which never was nor ever will be. The building became the Museum Künstlerkolonie in the late 1980s.