Casa Rossa

In 1931 Hermann Hesse and his third wife Ninon moved into the Casa Rossa in Montagnola, about 10 minutes walking-distance from Casa Camuzzi. His friend and patron Hans C. Bodmer from Zurich bought the land and built the house according to their wishes, granting them the right to live there for the rest of their life.

After 1931, watercolour painting becomes less important. Hermann Hesse is the landlord of a big piece of land where he grows vineyards, vegetables and flowers, and learns to appreciate the contemplative effect of gardening. In the idyll Stunden im Garten Hesse describes his feelings and thoughts aroused while taking care of the garden and narrates the magical meaning of fire and earth. His son Bruno, who often visited him in Montagnola, recalled that his father conceived the content of the The Glass Bead Game during his gardening hours, in touch with the earth.

«I divide my day between studying and gardening, the latter is necessary for meditation and for the spiritual digestion, therefore it must be done in solitude.»
From a letter to Carlo Isenberg, April 1934.

The Casa Rossa is nowadays a private dwelling.

Gallery