“With Us, Rudolf Steiner Enjoys Our Undivided Attention”

Angelika Schmitt and Philip Kovce have been directing the Rudolf Steiner Archive since 2025. A look back and ahead with Wolfgang Held.

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The ceremony marking the completion of the Rudolf Steiner Gesamtausgabe (GA) [Collected Works (CW)], comprising over 450 volumes, is just around the corner. You both have been heading the Rudolf Steiner Archive for about a year now, since the 100th anniversary of Steiner’s death on March 30, 2025. What has been the focus of your work so far?

Angelika Schmitt: First, Philip and I spent six months assisting our predecessor, David Marc Hoffmann. This gave us the opportunity to observe and familiarize ourselves with everything. Then, two days after the 100th anniversary of Steiner’s death, we took over as directors of the archive. The transition was seamless and went surprisingly well. David Marc Hoffmann handed over more and more responsibilities to us. So, we were leading meetings soon after we started. After we took office, things got rather turbulent, because within just a few months, several important administrative foundations crumbled. First, our IT service provider passed away and literally took many passwords with him to the grave. Then the building superintendent quit. And finally, our bookkeeper died quite unexpectedly. So, it was a dramatic year with enormous challenges—we had to fill the gaps as best we could and train new staff in tasks that we ourselves didn’t fully understand yet.

And all this while you’re in the home stretch of finishing the Collected Works.

Schmitt: That was the real challenge, yes. Seven GA volumes were completed in 2025, and at the same time, Philip and I were thinking about the future of the archive. Fortunately, the GA volumes had been in process for some time, so we only had to provide editorial support and resolve some final issues. It was more difficult to define the future and develop a vision and strategy. This was done in collaboration with the large Board of Trustees of the Rudolf Steiner Nachlassverwaltung [Estate Administration].

An eventful year!

Philip Kovce: Yes. I would add one more thing: there were three very different phases of experience during the onboarding period. Phase one was marked by fascination. Every day, David Marc Hoffmann guided us through the archive, so day after day, we could explore the collections further. That was wonderful, but of course it couldn’t last forever. Phase two was rather sobering personally: The place is already running smoothly! What do they still need me for? Am I superfluous here? In phase three, this feeling reversed: There are gaps everywhere! We’re needed everywhere! What should we tackle first?

What defined Steiner’s commemorative year 2025 for you?

Schmitt: For me, the exhibition on Rudolf Steiner’s written works, which we opened at House Duldeck in March 2025, is one of the defining events of the commemorative year. It also marked our successful start at the archive. We were involved in planning the exhibition, which allowed us to engage deeply with Rudolf Steiner as an author, editor, and publisher. And we were able to embark on our own journey of discovery within the archive: What archival materials do we actually possess? How are they organized? Where are they located? What makes sense to display in an exhibition? For me, it was a wonderful introduction to come into such direct contact with the archival materials.

This text is an excerpt from an article published in the (online exclusive) Goetheanum Weekly. You can read the full article on the website. If you are not yet a subscriber, you can get to know the Goetheanum Weekly for 1 CHF./€.

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