Documenta Urbana

The experimental residential area known as Documenta Urbana arose in the context of Documenta, the contemporary art exhibition that began in Kassel in 1955, and now takes place once every five years. Documenta Urbana was ultimately not part of the programme of (1982), but that made it no less topical. The programme for the neighbourhood came about against the backdrop of criticism of post-war, large-scale residential architecture as well as the later sprawling low-rise neighbourhoods, and the exodus from the city. The purpose of Documenta Urbana was to show, in a time of increased prosperity and a concurrent increase in leisure time, a model for a neighbourhood that was new, urban, and at the same time green, with more living and leisure space for adults and children, both inside and outside the home, as an alternative to the old city. In the Dönche, a nature reserve on the south-western slopes on the outskirts of the city, an area known as Schöne Aussicht (beautiful view) was chosen as a suitable location for the new model neighbourhood…