Liebermann-Villa
Encyclopedia
The Liebermann Villa is the former summer residence of the German painter Max Liebermann
Max Liebermann
Max Liebermann was a German-Jewish painter and printmaker best known for his etching and lithography.-Biography:...

. It is located directly at the shores of Lake Wannsee
Wannsee
Wannsee is a locality in the southwestern Berlin borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Germany. It is the westernmost locality of Berlin. In the quarter there are two lakes, the larger Großer Wannsee and the Kleiner Wannsee , are located on the river Havel and are separated only by the Wannsee bridge...

 in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

. It has been open to public since April 30, 2006 and shows a collection of Liebermanns' paintings of his villa
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...

 and its garden.

History

Max Liebermann

Max Liebermann (1847-1937) was co-founder and head of the Berlin Secession and head of the Prussian Academy of Arts
Prussian Academy of Arts
The Prussian Academy of Arts was an art school set up in Berlin, Brandenburg, in 1694/1696 by prince-elector Frederick III, in personal union Duke Frederick I of Prussia, and later king in Prussia. It had a decisive influence on art and its development in the German-speaking world throughout its...

 (Preußische Akademie der Künste). He was dismissed by the Nazis in 1933 and banned. He painted about 200 paintings of the garden at his villa, some of which are exhibited in his former studio on the upper floor.

Villa

In 1909, he bought a narrow piece of land with direct access to the shores of Lake Wannsee to escape from the city noise of Berlin. He lived there during the summer, from 1910 on. The villa was built by the architect Paul Otto Baumgarten. Liebermann called it his "little castle by the lake".

Garden

The lengthy garden is divided in two by the villa itself. From the center of the villa, there is a view over the grass to Lake Wannsee. There is a garden terrace in front of the house, looking toward Wannsee. On one side of the grass, there is the famous birch
Birch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...

 path, with birch trees growing wherever they sprout. On the other side, there are three hedged gardens. In the rear of the villa, is the garden house and a vegetable plot.

Permanent exhibition

In the former studio, on the upper floor, there are about 40 paintings related to the garden and the villa. On the ground floor, the history of the Liebermann family and the house are documented, including of how the Nazis forced Liebermann's wife, Martha to sell the villa. The selling price was highly undervalued and in the end, she didn't even get that. Hours before she was due to be deported to Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...

, she committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

 rather than risk death at the hands of the Nazis.

Museum's concept

The Max-Liebermann-Gesellschaft Berlin e. V. assists the museum in care of the villa and garden and in restoring them to their original state at the time of the Liebermanns' occupancy. Paintings of the garden and villa are presented continuously. A Multimedia Installation by Heiko Daxl
Heiko Daxl
Heiko Daxl is a German media artist, exhibition curator and design / art collector. He lives and works in Berlin and Zagreb.- Life :...

 and Ingeborg Fülepp
Ingeborg Fülepp
Ingeborg Fülepp, born in is a Croatian artist, university teacher, curator and film editor.- Life :She studied film editing and film analysis at the Academy for Theatre, Film and Television at the University of Zagreb and later education, video and interactive media with Carol Chomsky, and Howard...

opens a broader view with historical documents, photographs, sound recordings and films into the the 100 years turbulent history of the house and the garden. Visitors can experience the serenity and spirit of the villa as Liebermann did when he lived and painted there.

External links

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