A century after Bauhaus found its home in Dessau, the city is once again humming with the same creative energy that once revolutionised design. This September, the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation launched To the Core. Bauhaus Dessau 100—a sweeping, two-year celebration that runs through March 2027. The programme marks 100 years since the school’s move from Weimar to Dessau in 1925, the period that produced its most iconic works and defined its legacy.
The anniversary programme unfolds across three key spaces—the Bauhaus Museum Dessau, the historic Bauhaus Building designed by Walter Gropius, and the city itself, which has become almost synonymous with modernist architecture. In March 2026, five major exhibitions will open simultaneously, exploring the very materials and ideas—glass, steel, concrete, textiles, and movement—that shaped the modern world.
But this celebration isn’t limited to museum halls. A new digital project, Invisible Bauhaus Dessau, invites visitors to wander through the city’s vanished Bauhaus landmarks via augmented experiences and interactive maps. And across the streets of Dessau, installations and performances breathe life into the same philosophies that once united art, craft, and technology.
For visitors, Dessau is a living open-air museum. More than 300 Bauhaus-era buildings remain—among them, the main school, the Masters’ Houses, and the riverside Kornhaus restaurant—many now UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Compact and walkable, the city can easily be explored on foot or by bicycle, making it an effortless detour between Berlin and Leipzig, or the perfect centrepiece of a cultural pilgrimage through Germany.
When Walter Gropius founded the Bauhaus in Weimar in 1919, his idea was radical: to dissolve the boundaries between art and craft, between design and function. The aim was to create beautiful yet practical forms that could be produced for everyday life. At the Bauhaus, painters learned carpentry, sculptors studied metalwork, and architects experimented with textiles. It was a school, but also a laboratory of living ideas.
By the time the Bauhaus relocated to Dessau in 1925, it had found its architectural voice. The campus itself became a manifesto in glass, concrete, and steel—its asymmetrical wings, transparent walls and functional spaces expressing the belief that form should follow function. Under Gropius and later directors Hannes Meyer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the school thrived as a centre of experimentation.
Though it was forced to close in 1933 under the Nazi regime, its short life left a global imprint. From Le Corbusier’s housing projects to the clean lines of mid-century modern furniture, the Bauhaus ethos continues to shape how we think about design—functional, affordable, and human-centred. Its DNA runs through everything from Scandinavian furniture to American suburban homes, even influencing today’s minimalist digital interfaces.
The Bauhaus Museum Dessau, which opened in 2019, now houses one of the largest collections of Bauhaus objects—nearly 49,000 in all. Its architecture mirrors the school’s aesthetic: simple, transparent, and honest in its materials. It stands as both archive and invitation, urging visitors to think not only about what Bauhaus was, but what it can still be.
This sense of continuity drives To the Core. The opening weekend in September 2025 reimagined Oskar Schlemmer’s famed “material dances,” with contemporary performers tracing the same dialogue between body, space, and form that once animated the Bauhaus stage. Textile installations draped across the Prellerhaus studios reinterpret the interplay of structure and softness that characterised Bauhaus design.
Meanwhile, walking tours—both physical and virtual—invite travellers to rediscover the city through the eyes of its original residents: students and artists who believed design could change how people live. The programme’s tone is less nostalgic than exploratory, asking how Bauhaus ideas might address the challenges of our time—sustainability, urban density, and the evolving relationship between humans and technology.
Q1. What is Bauhaus Dessau 100?
Bauhaus Dessau 100 is a two-year celebration from 2025 to 2027 marking 100 years since the Bauhaus school moved from Weimar to Dessau. It features exhibitions, performances, walking tours, and digital experiences that explore Bauhaus design and philosophy.
Q2. Why is Dessau important to the Bauhaus movement?
Dessau is where the Bauhaus reached its creative peak under Walter Gropius. The city houses iconic Bauhaus buildings like the main school, Masters’ Houses, and the Kornhaus restaurant—now UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Q3. What can visitors see during the Bauhaus Dessau 100 celebrations?
Visitors can explore five major exhibitions opening in 2026, immersive installations, dance performances, and the Invisible Bauhaus Dessau digital project that maps vanished architectural landmarks across the city.
Q4. How can tourists explore Bauhaus in Dessau today?
Dessau can easily be explored on foot or by bicycle. Key sites include the Bauhaus Building, the Masters’ Houses, and the Bauhaus Museum Dessau, which holds over 49,000 artefacts related to the movement.
Q5. What is the legacy of the Bauhaus movement?
The Bauhaus revolutionised global design by merging art, architecture, and function. Its influence extends from Le Corbusier’s buildings to minimalist furniture, Scandinavian interiors, and even modern digital interfaces.
