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Villa Tugendhat - design and fascinating history in Brno

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If you visit Brno in the Czech Republic, don't miss Villa Tugendhat. But you need to book your visit least 2 months in advance. A limited number of visitors are accepted and the interest is very high. And yes, we understand why! The visit to the villa was definitely one of the highlights in Brno.

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A monument to modern architecture

Villa Tugendhat, which is now museumdesigned by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and built in 1929-1930. The villa was home to Greta and Fritz Tugendhat and their three children. The fact that this house was built so early is fascinating and you realise that at that time it was extremely modern.

Villa Tugendhat 1929

It's all about straight lines, simplicity and large, light-filled windows. Every detail is well thought out: the tall doors, the exclusive woods and the "semi-transparent" stone wall in the living room. In fact, the house is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Turism
Before entering Villa Tugendhat, you have to wrap your shoes in plasters
Villa Tugendhat Brno
Large windows and lots of light
 Brno Tjeckien
Here, by the wall of light, Greta liked to sit...
Design Villa Tugendhat
Hypermodern 1930s bathroom

Exciting technical solutions

It is not only the design that impresses, but also all the technical solutions. The large windows facing the garden can be raised and lowered at the touch of a button. Food is sent between floors by a food lift and stored in a Bosch refrigerator.

Ventilation in villa tugendhat

Ventilation and heating are controlled by simple but ingenious systems and are effectively concealed in the walls and floors. It's almost unbelievable that this, which feels so modern in many ways, was built over 85 years ago!

Pannrum
The boiler room is large and clinically clean

Dramatic history in Villa Tugendhat

However, the strongest feeling is about the history of the house. Greta and Fritz Tugendhat were Jewish, and as the Jew-hatred of the Second World War loomed, they were forced to flee headlong and leave their life's work behind. The family fled first to Switzerland and then to Venezuela. They eventually moved back to Switzerland, but never returned to the Czech Republic.

World War II in Villa Tugendhat

So what happened to Villa Tugendhat? Well, the Gestapo took over ... The villa was used for everything from storage to a children's gymnasium, and one of the walls of exclusive wood ended up as panelling in a school canteen. In 1992, the agreement that dissolved Czechoslovakia into the Czech Republic and Slovakia was signed here. And now the house is a museum. We are so happy that we have been able to experience this!

Tjeckoslovakien
At this table the decision was made to divide Czechoslovakia into two countries. In the background is the exclusive wood panelling that for some time was lost in a school canteen ...
All our UNESCO heritage in different countries. Click on the image!

This trip was a press trip. The images, thoughts and opinions are, as usual, our own.

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