Villa Wolf

{{multiple image

| align = left

| total_width = 230

| image1 = Erich Wolf.jpg

| image2 = Elisabeth Wolf.jpg

| footer = Erich and Elisabeth Wolf commissioned the villa in 1925

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File:Bärbel und Christine Wolf.jpg

The building was commissioned in 1925 by the cloth and textile manufacturer Erich Wolf (1883–1958).{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/01/arts/design/rebuilding-a-modernist-gem-from-mies-van-der-rohe.html|title=A Push to Rebuild a Modernist Gem by Mies|first=Gerrit|last=Wiesmann|date=2016-03-31|work=New York Times|access-date=2020-07-22}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.naemi-wilke-stift.de/de/stiftung/aktuelles/newsdetails/article/modell-der-mies-van-der-rohe-villa-wolf-an-das-nae.html|title=Modell der Mies-van-der-Rohe-Villa Wolf an das Naemi-Wilke-Stift übergeben |language=German |trans-title=Model of the Mies van der Rohe Villa Wolf handed over to the Naemi-Wilke-Stift |publisher=Naemi-Wilke-Stift Guben |access-date=2020-07-22}} He increased his wealth by marrying Elisabeth Wilke (1894–1987), who in turn had inherited a hat factory, in 1922. He had chosen an elevation in Guben as the building site, from which one had an overview of the industrial plants running along the Neisse.{{cite web| url=http://www.carlosdemalchi.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/DEMALCHI_AR10342.pdf | title=History of Twentieth Century Architecture: Wolf House by Mies Van der Rohe | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727214726/http://www.carlosdemalchi.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/DEMALCHI_AR10342.pdf | archive-date=2020-07-27}} The narrow hillside plot ran along Teichbornstraße (today ulica Krolewska) and Grüne Wiese (today ulica Piastowska).{{Cite web|url=https://www.zeit.de/2004/17/A-Mies-Villa|title = ZEIT ONLINE | Lesen Sie zeit.de mit Werbung oder im PUR-Abo. Sie haben die Wahl}}{{Cite web|url=http://scottyscout.com/brandenburg/villa-wolf-gubin/|title = "Bauhaus" in der Lausitz – Villa Wolf Gubin " ScottyScout|date = 11 May 2018}}

With the advance of the Red Army in World War II the family fled in 1945.{{Cite news|url=https://www.lr-online.de/lausitz/guben/_meine-mutter-hatte-auch-so-dunkle-augen-wie-das-maedchen-auf-der-buehne_-33405286.html|title=Meine Mutter hatte auch so dunkle Augen wie das Mädchen auf der Bühne|language=German|trans-title=My mother had dark eyes like the girl on stage|work=Lausitzer Rundschau|location=Guben|date=2003-07-02|access-date=2020-07-22}} They left everything behind, the building burnt down and was not rebuilt. The remaining building materials were used for the reconstruction of buildings in Gubin. In the 1960s, the land was apparently leveled. The area was greened and integrated into the newly created Waszkiewicz Park in 1977.{{Cite web|url=https://touristinformation-guben.de/de/sehenswertes/sehenswertes-in-gubin/artikel-villa-wolf-in-gubin.html|title = Villa Wolf in Gubin}}

From 2001 onwards, on the initiative of the Internationale Bauausstellung Fürst-Pückler-Land under the direction of Lars Scharnholz of the Brandenburg University of Technology (BTU), the foundations were excavated and then measured and documented by the Museum of Modern Art.{{Cite web|url=http://www.iba-see2010.de/de/verstehen/projekte/projekt22.html|title=Projekt 18: Gubener Wolle - Neisseinsel - Haus Wolf |language=German|trans-title=Project 18: Guben wool - Neisse island - House Wolf|website=Internationale Bauausstellung (IBA) Fürst-Pückler-Land 2000-2010|access-date=2020-07-22}} Further investigations with ground-penetrating radar are planned in order to determine the structure of the building in more detail. In 2006, a "Mies-Memory-Box" in Gubin provided information about the building with historical photographs as well as shard remains from the Wolf's porcelain collection. It was subsequently shown in Wrocław, Berlin, Dessau and Stuttgart.{{cite news

| author =

| title = Eröffnung in Gubin: Mies-Memory-Box

| trans-title = Opening in Gubin: Mies-Memory-Box

| url = https://www.lr-online.de/lausitz/guben/eroeffnung-in-gubin_-mies-memory-box-37480808.html

| language = German

| work = Lausitzer Rundschau

| location = Gubin/Guben

| date = 2006-05-18

| access-date = 2020-07-22

}} Today marks on the ground in the park are reminders of the villa.

Following the idea of the city planner Florian Mausbach, a German-Polish initiative is striving to reconstruct the building.{{cite news

| author = Ronald Berg

| title = Ausstellung zum Gubiner Haus Wolf: Die Funktion folgt der Form

| trans-title = Exhibition on Gubin House Wolf: Function follows form

| url = https://taz.de/!5286276/

| language = German

| work = Die Tageszeitung

| location =

| date = 2016-03-14

| access-date = 2020-07-22

}} The Government of Poland signaled its support in 2019.{{cite news

| author = Daniel Schauff

| title = Unterstützung von Polens höchster Denkmalpflegerin: Villa Wolf in Gubin soll Teil von Architekturroute werden

| trans-title = Support from Poland's highest monument conservator: Villa Wolf in Gubin to become part of architectural route

| url = https://www.lr-online.de/lausitz/guben/unterstuetzung-von-polens-hoechster-denkmalpflegerin-villa-wolf-in-gubin-soll-teil-von-architekturroute-werden-38327766.html

| language = German

| work = Lausitzer Rundschau

| location = Gubin/Berlin/Warschau

| date = 2019-08-24

| access-date = 2020-07-22

}}

The plans for the building envisaged a simple cubic, red-black clad clinker brick building with an asymmetrical design of flat cuboids of different sizes.{{cite news

| author = Harriet Stürmer

| title = Große Pläne für zerstörte Villa Wolf

| trans-title = Big plans for destroyed Villa Wolf

| url = https://www.svz.de/regionales/brandenburg/Kultur_BB/grosse-plaene-fuer-zerstoerte-villa-wolf-id12361741.html

| language = German

| work = Schweriner Volkszeitung

| location =

| date = 2016-01-04

| access-date = 2020-07-22

}} The house had around over 1000 m². The facade and interior walls were clad with flat ashlars. The front of the house was oriented to the west, the entrance was on the east side. The building had a "treasure chamber" to house the Wolf collection of art and paintings as well as a sculpture collection. The open interiors were laid out to interplay with the nature outside. Spacious terraces took up the feeling of space, which was to become a characteristic of the architect's later buildings of openness and flow. However, Mies van der Rohe designed not only the building shell, but also objects for the interior decoration.{{Cite web|url=https://villawolfgubin.eu/rekonstruktion|title = Rekonstruktion - www.villawolfgubin.eu}}

After completion the facades were bare.{{Cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Villa_Wolf_Guben_05.jpg|title=English: Photo of Villa Wolf in Guben shortly after completion, main entrance street view}} Vines were planted afterwards along it.{{Cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Villa_Wolf_Guben_04b.jpg|title = Deutsch: Foto der Villa Wolf in Guben, Haupteingang. Die Kletterpflanzen wurden von Frau Wolf angesetzt um die Form weniger streng zu gestalten}}

Mies van der Rohe donated the original pencil drawings and sketches to the Museum of Modern Art in New York.{{Cite web|url=https://www.moma.org/collection/works?locale=en&utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=wolf+house+mies+van+der+rohe&classifications=any&date_begin=Pre-1850&date_end=2018&with_images=1&page=&direction=|title=The Collection | MoMA|website=The Museum of Modern Art}} The museum also has a scale model created in 2001 that was shown in various exhibitions.{{Cite web|url=https://www.moma.org/collection/works/88160|title=Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Wolf House, Gubin, Germany, Landscape model. 1925–1927 (model 2001) | MoMA|website=The Museum of Modern Art}}

File:Villa Wolf Guben 05.jpg|View from the street shortly after completion

File:Villa Wolf Guben 01.jpg|Patio

File:Villa Wolf Guben 06.jpg|View from the river towards the terraced gardens

File:Villa Wolf Guben Interieur 01.jpg|Interior towards patio

File:Villa Wolf Guben Interieur 02.jpg|one of the rooms

== See also ==

• Haus Lange and Haus Esters in Krefeld
• Villa Tugendhat in Brno
• Villa Cavrois in Croix

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|editor1-last=Scharnholz |editor1-first=Lars |title=The Wolf House Project. Studies & Design|location=Cottbus|year=2002|publisher=Internationale Bauausstellung (IBA)|isbn=3-9806704-6-5}}
• {{cite book|editor1-last=Schmidt|editor1-first=Leo|title=The Wolf House Project. Traces/Spuren/Ślady|location=Cottbus|year=2001|publisher=Brandenburgische Technische Universität|isbn=3-9807583-3-8}}
• Blakwood, M. (Director). (1985). Mies [Motion Picture].
• Cohen, J.-L. (1996). Mies Van der Rohe. London: E & FN Spon.
• Davies, C. (2006). Wolf House. In C. Davies, Key Houses of the Twentieth Century- Plans, Sections and Elevations (pp. 58–59). London: Laurence King Publisher.
• Franz Schulze, i. a. (1989). Mies Van der Rohe, A Critical Biography. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

{{Commons category-inline|Villa Wolf (Guben)}}

• [https://www.villawolfgubin.eu/ Website for the reconstruction of Villa Wolf]
• [http://www.carlosdemalchi.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/DEMALCHI_AR10342.pdf Wolf Villa Poster (PDF)] at [http://www.carlosdemalchi.com/index.php/blog/ Carlos DeMalchi blog]
• [https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model/90cbabb17770525b548aa422e334d443/wolf-house-Ludwig-Mies-van-der-Rohe 3D Model of the villa]

{{Ludwig Mies van der Rohe}}

Category:Houses completed in 1926

Category:International style architecture in Europe

Category:Ludwig Mies van der Rohe buildings

Category:Modernist architecture in Poland

Category:Functionalist architecture

Category:Villas in Poland

Category:Buildings and structures in Poland destroyed during World War II