07.02.2025
Haus Schulenburg is a brand ambassador for Thuringia
On Friday, 7 February 2025, Haus Schulenburg Gera and the Henry van de Velde Museum in Haus Schulenburg were named the 50th brand ambassadors for Thuringia. They are regarded as a special architectural, artistic and cultural experience.
“The ambassadors are the face of Thuringia at home and abroad” and should inspire guests to travel beyond the four leading products Weimar, Wartburg, Erfurt and Rennsteig. We suggest that in connection with the Bauhaus Trail pioneer Henry van de Velde and the Bauhaus in Weimar, the rich building culture of “Classical Modernism” in Thuringia should be placed more at the centre of tourist interest. The city of Gera has the most “Classical Modernist” buildings in Thuringia, particularly thanks to the work of van de Velde’s pupil Thilo Schoder.
01.02.2025
new exhibition GETANZTER RAUM: two- and three-dimensional objects by Jean Kirsten Dresden
Since 2009, Dresden artist Jean Kirsten has been working with Rudolf von Laban’s theory of spatial harmony and kinetography. His aim is to design spaces in the sense of an installation with his own two- or three-dimensional objects. In doing so, each sculptural object claims its own independence within a staging. The empty space that arises between the objects and is thus defined by them is also important to him.
The exhibition at Haus Schulenburg is a not-so-easy attempt to delve into Henry van den Velde’s own interior design, today’s pictorial objects inspired by the theories of Rudolf von Laban. At best, it could be a comparison of artistic qualities that are a century apart in time.
01.12.2024
Debschwitz Christmas market at Haus Schulenburg
The 1st Debschwitz Christmas Market took place in the courtyard of Haus Schulenburg on 1 Advent. The event began with this year’s honouring of the district’s athletes on the house’s cabaret stage.
From 3.00 pm, the Christmas tree in the courtyard was festively decorated by the children from the “Storchennest” daycare centre.
The Rutheneum choir performed a Christmas programme.
A total of around 450 guests visited the market and enjoyed the pre-Christmas atmosphere with coffee, cake, mulled wine and grilled sausages.
10.10.2024
Presentation of Haus Schulenburg Gera at the European Heritage Award ceremony in Bucharest
On Sunday, 6 October 2024, the European Heritage Excellence Day took place in the run-up to the European Heritage Awards ceremony, where the 26 winning projects from all over Europe were presented. The event was held at the Royal Palace of the National Museum of Art in Bucharest.
Haus Schulenburg was presented by Prof Dr med Jan T. Kielstein.
On the following day, Monday 7 October 2024, the prizes were awarded to the winners in the venerable Athenaeum Romanum.
We have compiled extracts from the official award ceremony for you under this link.
09.10.2024
Official award ceremony of the European Heritage Prize for Haus Schulenburg Gera and Dr Volker Kielstein
On 7 October 2024, the official presentation of the Europa Nostra Award European Heritage Prize to all 26 winners from across Europe took place in Bucharest as part of a festive ceremony.
The award winners, Dr Volker Kielstein, 1st row, centre
Presentation of the prize to Dr Volker Kielstein
The European Heritage Award ceremony took place at the Romanian Athenaeum, the most prestigious concert hall in Bucharest. The ceremony was attended by Prof Dr Sergiu Nistor, Advisor to the President, Raluca Turcan, Minister of Culture of Romania, and Dr Nicușor Dan, Mayor of Bucharest.
The ceremony, jointly organised by Europa Nostra and the European Commission, was accompanied by a musical programme by the Romanian symphony ensemble “Violoncellissimo” under the direction of Professor Marin Cazacu.
10.09.2024
Official announcement by the City of Gera on the European Heritage Award for Dr. Volker Kielstein and the “Haus Schulenburg Gera” project
City of Gera congratulates Haus Schulenburg on winning the European Heritage Award

As part of this year’s Haus Schulenburg summer festival, the “Europa Nostra” cultural heritage award was presented on August 31. The European heritage association Europa Nostra and other representative speakers from the European Union and the Klassikstiftung Weimar honored the reconstruction and current use of Haus Schulenburg.
Mayor Kurt Dannenberg congratulated the owner Dr. Kielstein on behalf of the city on this prestigious award and acknowledged the merits of the Schulenburg project as a European commitment. In his greeting, he emphasized the special achievements in the field of monument preservation: “Thanks to Dr. Kielstein’s passionate private commitment, the entire culture of Gera has been upgraded with supra-regional and even international appeal. Haus Schulenburg is not just a museum, but a place for encounters, art and cultural exchange”.
The building combines history and contemporary architecture and is a popular venue for events alongside the museum.
Dannenberg also pointed out that this award ceremony is part of the cultural highlights of the coming weeks, such as the opening of the special exhibition on the giants of the last ice age at the Museum of Natural History and the major new Otto Dix presentation.
Haus Schulenburg with the Henry van de Velde Museum has established itself as a valuable cultural monument in the city of Gera. It receives many national and international visitors every year and makes a significant contribution to the city’s cultural reputation. The Europa Nostra Culture Prize has already been preceded by other awards.
In 2012, Dr. Kielstein was awarded the Thuringian Prize for Monument Preservation and in 2019 the German Prize for Monument Preservation.

31.08.2024
Summer festival – If the weather is fine, additional tickets are available at the box office
On August 31, 2024, we would like to celebrate our European Heritage Award with a summer party. We were delighted with the great response when tickets went on sale, but were also surprised at the same time. Due to the bad weather option, which involves moving the event to the indoor stage, tickets were limited. We are therefore hoping for a sunny, rain-free summer evening with many more guests. Tickets will be available at the box office, weather permitting. We recommend everyone who wants to come to keep an eye on the weather and follow our social media channels or our ticker on the website. There we will provide the necessary information for further ticket sales.
Our small official celebration followed by a jazz concert will take place romantically under the trees in the garden. Food and drink will be provided. Admission is from 5.30 pm. The event starts at 6 pm.
As a musical highlight, we are looking forward to the Dixielanders from Jena. The band has already won over audiences at numerous national and international festivals with their rousing program. Stylistically oriented towards the “Chicago Style” but also towards elements of “Harlem Jazz”, the solo improvisations are at the center of the often rarely heard pieces(www.dixielanders.de) in addition to varied tutti and vocal arrangements.
Do you have any questions? Please contact us by telephone on 0365/826410 or by e-mail at kontakt@haus-schulenburg-gera.de.
We would like to win the Audience Award in October. We also need your vote for this. Please support us: to vote for the Audience Award
30.05.2024
European Heritage Award / Europa Nostra Award 2024: We are one of the winners
2012 Thuringian Monument Protection Prize, 2019 German Prize for Monument Protection, 2024 European Cultural Heritage Prize Europa Nostra
On Thursday, May 30, 2024, the European heritage association Europa Nostra announced this year’s winners. One winner in the “Conservation and Adaptive Reuse” category is “Haus Schulenburg Gera”. The European award has been presented since 1978, and in 2023 it will be presented for the restoration of the Royal Gardens in Venice and the restoration of the late Gothic carved altar by Veit Stoß in St. Mary’s Church in Krakow.
This is the second European award this year for Haus Schulenburg and the Kielstein family. It was only at the end of March that the King of Belgium recognized Volker Kielstein’s services to the reconstruction of Haus Schulenburg with a medal, which was ceremoniously presented by the Belgian ambassador.
“Europe knows Haus Schulenburg,” says Volker Kielstein, who is not only the owner of Haus Schulenburg, but also the director of the Henry van de Velde Museum. In the meantime, Volker Kielstein no longer manages Haus Schulenburg alone. His son Jan is at his side and grandson Milan also spent a few weeks at the house in March. Where is the path leading? “It is the wish of the entire family that Haus Schulenburg continues to develop as it began in 1996. My late wife Rita would be very happy about this development,” Volker Kielstein is certain. And so the whole family will probably be traveling to the Romanian capital Bucharest for the award ceremony at the beginning of October. “We would like to take this opportunity to thank our employee Karsten Friedrich, who has held the reins at Haus Schulenburg as administrator from the very beginning,” continues Volker Kielstein. “That’s why it’s important to us that he accompanies us to Bucharest”.
The two European awards are celebrated with a summer party in August. Tickets will be available for purchase soon.
And Haus Schulenburg needs all the support it can get. You can now vote for the audience award with just one click. Your vote for us. Danke. vote.europanostra.org (beendet)
Would you like to find out more about the reconstruction, are you interested in how it all began? Then click through our gallery or drop by! We are looking forward to it!
30.05.2024
Image video for the Europa Nostra Prize
An image video about Haus Schulenburg was produced and published to mark the award of the European Heritage Prize. You can access the video via the following link.
13.04.2024
MDR Kultur meets Dr. Volker Kielstein
The Magdeburg doctor Volker Kielstein, founder of the Henry van de Velde Museum, Haus Schulenburg Gera, receives a medal from the Belgian king for preserving the legacy of the architect and artist.
26.03.2024
Dr. Volker Kielstein is appointed Officer of the Order of the Belgian Crown by the King of Belgium
The award was presented at a reception in Haus Schulenburg by the Belgian Ambassador to Germany, H.E. Geert Muyelle.
From the Ambassador’s laudatory speech:
Dear Mr. Kielstein,
a real encounter, a decisive encounter, is something that resembles fate.
Today, Villa Schulenburg and its treasures are an important cultural reference point in Thuringia and throughout the world.
You are the face of this success, which is inextricably linked to your wife Rita, who has been very active and tireless in leading this wonderful adventure with you.
Villa Schulenburg also stands for the scientific quality of its research and educational activities relating to the work of Henry van de Velde.
You have been able to create a network of trust and friendship on a local and international level by carefully researching for years to locate and compile the original heritage of the villa, which was scattered all over the world.
Throughout your life, you have pursued various careers that have served to revitalize the Villa Schulenburg as a work of art: Doctor, architect, entrepreneur, designer, manager, artist, communicator, educator – like an echo of the multidisciplinary nature of Henry van de Velde’s life and work.
It is a great honor for me to award you the Order of the Officer of the Order of the Crown in the name of His Majesty the King of the Belgians.
Further information can be found in the ARD Mediathek

Dr. Volker Kielstein (left) and H. E. Geert Muylle.

Certificate and medal
23.07.2023
Generational change – Volker Kielstein talks about his life’s work at Haus Schulenburg Gera
For 27 years, Volker Kielstein, a doctor from Gera, converted the Haus Schulenburg villa in Gera, designed by Belgian architect and Art Nouveau designer Henry van de Velde, into a museum. He transformed the almost derelict nurses’ school into a complete work of art.