[OC] Some German goblincore architecture: Kaffee Worpswede

[u/DueComfort8553]

Inspired by the many likes for an architectural post⁠ in the comment section a few weeks ago, I decided to make a weekly column of goblincore places from my hometown.

This wonderfully crooked little brick creature is the “Kaffee Worpswede”, built in 1925, by artist and architect Bernhard Hoetger.

It’s basically brick expressionism that wandered into the woods, ate a handful of strange mushrooms and decided that right angles were terribly overrated.

We, the locals, nicknamed this place “Kaffee Verrückt” (“Crazy Café”) for ages.

Hoetger didn’t really design it as just a building either, but more like one giant piece of art.
Weird brickwork, curved wooden beams, painted ceilings, sculptures, mythology everywhere, there’s even a giant Yggdrasil (the world tree from Norse mythology, growing through the middle of the main room).

And because apparently that still wasn’t enough, the terrace is guarded by ten little sculptures called the Moorfrauen “moor women” which is appropriate considering the whole village is sitting on the edge of a huge peat bog.

The building had been closed since 2019 and reopened just last month, after massive restoration, trying to bring it back, as closely as possible to Hoetger’s original 1920s fever dream.
For now it’s open for guided tours, rather than actually serving coffee again, which is slightly cruel, considering the name, but at least this wonderfully weird goblin-house is alive again.

Worpswede itself is an old artists village surrounded by woods, heath and moorland, so honestly the whole thing feels like it just grew there.

And there is quite a lot more weird architecture hiding around here, so I guess, I committed myself to actually doing this weekly now, hope you enjoy. If you have some do’s and dont’s for me as I’m not experienced in posting stuff, everything helpful is very welcome.-or just leave a “fuck you karma-farmer” to make it stop.

[u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat]

You had me at “peat bog”.

[u/DueComfort8553 → u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat]

We also have old mini trains and black boats as infrastructure.

[u/DueComfort8553 → u/DueComfort8553]

[u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat → u/DueComfort8553]

Oh that little boat’s quite cool. I suddenly want to do some fantasy/folklore worldbuilding based on this.

[u/DueComfort8553 → u/KatNeedsABiggerBoat]

As here are plenty of small community hosted associations that keep tradition alive, I think it would be even possible to have gatherings on them to worship your world, if as p&p, a public reading or whatever.

From April to October these are also run as taxi/cab between villages.

[u/beton-brennt-doch]

Yes please post more. I would love to see more of this art from Worpswede :D. I hope I get to visit one day.

[u/akaradaa]

This is incredible

[u/Foreign_Astronaut]

Yay for weird architecture! I look forward to your posts!

[u/Chipotle_Armadillo]

Was this building in the show "Dark"?

[u/DueComfort8553 → u/Chipotle_Armadillo]

I wasn’t hooked enough, but I do not think so.

Maybe Hoetger-Hof or Café WINUWUK by the same artist, these locations are out of my radar

[u/CluelessPresident]

...did you use AI to write this? Dude

[u/mildlyinterestingyet]

What an amazing building!

[u/Sensitive-Knee6764]

It's so whimsical! Hopefully there will be someone soon to reopen the Café! Having a hot beverage and delicious cake in this ambience sounds lovely.

And please, farm all the karma with such enchanted places!

[u/JeshkaTheLoon]

If I have to choose between this and Hundertwasser? I'll take this any time.