Ottersdorf, Germany
A secret spot not yet known to the public…
Tucked away in Ottersdorf stands the childhood home of Anselm Kiefer — where he lived with his parents, siblings, and another family of teachers from 1951 to 1957 before moving to Rastatt-Niederbühl.
In 2019, Kiefer quietly repurchased the house with the vision of restoring it as an exhibition space. When filmmaker Wim Wenders visited, he was so captivated by the home and its proximity to the Rhine River that he filmed scenes for Anselm – The Sound of Time both in Kiefer’s childhood room and along the riverbanks.
I was lucky enough to book a 1-hour self-paced visit and wander the house in complete silence — witnessing its inaugural exhibition of early works by Kiefer (1971–1986), created in his Hornbach and Buchen studios in the Odenwald.
The themes already feel unmistakably his: landscape, history, religion, mythology, and poetry — especially echoes of Paul Celan, Victor Hugo, and Walther von der Vogelweide.
After chatting with two museum staff members, I learned something fascinating: the exhibitions here are curated by Kiefer himself. He even uses a small scale model of the house to plan exactly how each painting is displayed.
📅 Next exhibition (from March 20, 2026):
Anselm Kiefer – Watercolors and Books, 1969–2017
Highly recommended — especially knowing that tickets to most Kiefer exhibitions sell out within a day.
👀 Art friends, you’ll want this on your radar before the crowds discover it.
