Searching for traces of Hermann Hesse: His time at Untersee

Hermann Hesse (1877-1962) is one of the world's best-known German-language authors and continues to fascinate his readers to this day. What is this magic and fascination of the poet Hermann Hesse? We want to explore this question and go in search of clues to the place that became his first 'refuge' as a husband and later family man: Lake Constance, Untersee and the village of Gaienhofen. There, in the seclusion and distance of civilization, he wanted to lead a simple life close to nature with his wife Mia and fulfil his life's mission of writing poetry, but in the silence of the Untersee he was also preoccupied with existential questions, such as the question of happiness. The answers to these questions can be found in long and almost relentless processes of self-discovery, which were already evident in his early youth and which Hermann Hesse continued during his time in Gaienhofen. We want to bring these groundbreaking years between 1904 and 1912 to life through descriptions, pictures and excerpts from Hermann Hesse's works.>> This event is the first of two on the subject of 'Hesse', the second, Klingsor's Last Summer - Hermann Hesse in Ticino, will take place on Friday, 14.11.2025. <<

Course director: Dr. Glück, Elisabeth. The speaker is an art historian, lecturer and tour guide.