Outdoor art gallery or sculpture park

The proposed renaming of Germany's largest open-air museum, the LWL Open-Air Museum Detmold, has sparked controversy in the city of Detmold. The city portal has expressed concerns that the proposed name, "LWL Museum Hellerlecht, Westphalian State Museum for Culture and History, Detmold," weakens the identity, visibility, and tourist value of the open-air museum.

Mayor Frank Hilker has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent this renaming, having begun his campaign against the change in March. He has appealed to the members of the Regional Council to make a decision that avoids the greatest possible damage to Detmold.

The decision about the name change was made by the Culture Committee of the Westphalia-Lippe Regional Council. Despite Hilker's efforts and a contradictory local press release, the CDU, the majority faction in the LWL, voted in favour of the renaming.

The term "Hellerlecht" is largely rejected by the population, as it fails to reflect the understandable and well-known location of the museum for over 50 years. An expert on Lippe Platt has concluded that the term translates to "Smallest Light" in High German, which has raised concerns that the name change would mean that Germany's largest open-air museum would henceforth bear the name "Smallest Light."

The city portal has not been mentioned as being actively involved in the issue until this press release. The decision has caused significant confusion in Detmold's town hall, and Mayor Hilker has requested others, in addition to his personal engagement, to influence the decision-makers in Münster.

The final decision on the renaming of the LWL Open-Air Museum Detmold will be made by the Regional Council on July 4, 2025. Thorsten Engelhardt can be contacted for inquiries regarding the renaming issue. His contact information is provided: Email and phone number 05231 977 105.

Mayor Hilker has emphasised that the cooperation with the open-air museum on a local level is excellent and not up for debate. The city council, at Hilker's request, unanimously passed a letter to the LWL rejecting the project. The city portal and Mayor Hilker are seeking to influence the decision-makers in Münster to reconsider the proposed name change.