German State Election Draws Bauhaus Into AfD Culture War

A historic German design school called the Bauhaus has been pulled into a heated political fight. The far-right party known as the AfD has made the school a target in its campaign ahead of a state election in Saxony-Anhalt, a region in eastern Germany. The election is expected in September, and polls show the AfD could win power there for the very first time. The Bauhaus school is over 100 years old and is known around the world for changing the way buildings and everyday objects are designed.

The AfD, whose full name is Alternative for Germany, says it wants a 'new patriotic cultural policy.' The party believes that German culture should focus on national pride and tradition. It has singled out the Bauhaus school as a symbol of the kind of culture it opposes. An AfD spokesperson said the school 'stands for deracination,' meaning he feels it pulls people away from their roots and national identity.

The Bauhaus school was started in eastern Germany after World War One. It was meant to be a place where art, design, and everyday life could come together. Designers who worked at Bauhaus, like Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, created famous steel chairs, lamps, and coffee makers that are still found in homes around the world. The school helped spread the use of concrete, glass, and steel in clean, simple buildings that changed the look of cities everywhere.

The Nazis banned the Bauhaus school in the 1930s. After World War Two, its buildings in the cities of Weimar, Dessau, and Bernau were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996. That list recognizes places that are considered important to all of humanity. Today, the school's museum in Dessau draws tens of thousands of visitors every year.

Barbara Steiner, who runs the Bauhaus in Dessau, says the AfD is not just targeting her school. She says the party is going after 'a diverse cultural landscape,' meaning a wide range of different art and culture. She told reporters that Bauhaus and what it stands for does not fit the AfD's vision of German history. The AfD draws its values from medieval rulers and historical figures like Martin Luther and Otto von Bismarck instead.

The AfD says it dislikes modern architecture that it calls soulless. It also criticizes theaters that it says do not put on German plays. It wants to cut government money for what it calls 'anti-German art and culture.' The party pointed to a 2020 order by U.S. President Donald Trump that promoted classical and traditional architecture for government buildings as a model it would follow.

However, AfD cultural spokesperson Hans-Thomas Tillschneider said the Bauhaus would not be shut down under an AfD government. 'We don't want to forbid anything,' he said. He explained that his party would simply choose what kinds of culture it supports with public money. The Bauhaus currently receives funding from the federal government, the state, and local city funds.

The AfD is polling at around 40% in Saxony-Anhalt, which puts it far ahead of any other party. Nationally, the party stands at about 28%. Political scientist Michael Kolkmann said the AfD could use a win in Saxony-Anhalt as a 'blueprint' — a test run — for changes it might want to make in other German states later. That possibility worries many people in universities and cultural institutions across Germany.

Universities are also worried about what an AfD government might mean for them. The party says it wants to get rid of courses on gender studies and post-colonialism. It also wants to remove teaching styles it says come from leftist 1960s ideas. Claudia Becker, the head of Martin Luther University, said this threatens academic freedom. She said scientific research must be 'driven and guided by science itself, rather than by ideologies.'

Germany's constitution and its system of shared power between federal and state governments do limit how much any one state can change. Legal experts say courts would likely block any extreme moves. For now, the Bauhaus's worldwide fame may be one of its strongest protections. As director Steiner put it, any attempt to harm the school 'is guaranteed to attract worldwide attention.'