Mackintosh’s Hill House Becomes an International Iconic House!

SPECIAL – Czech Classics

Record Number of Iconic Houses - Part 1

Laichter House: The Story of Burnt Books and Broken Bricks

Iconic Houses Network Members' Meetup London, November 4

Remembering Irving J. Gill

Iconic Houses in the Media

Interview in Leading Catalan newspaper ARA

Bauhaus Villa in Berlin For Sale

Historical Exhibition, Marie-Laure de Noailles, Painter, Conversation

Our Badge of Honour

Istanbul’s Modernist Ataköy Housing Estate is At Risk

Early Furniture Designs by Le Corbusier on Permanent Display in Maison Blanche

Photo Report City Icons Amsterdam

Healing Through Architecture

Reopening An Iconic Modernist Landmark

City Icons Kick Off with Talk by Linda Vlassenrood

MORE MIES - Pure Architecture in Haus Lange Haus Esters

Through a Bauhaus Lens: Edith Tudor-Hart and Isokon

Modernism Week Lecture: 12 Years of Iconic Houses

Aluminaire House Grand Opening

Exhibition Icons of the Czech Avant-Garde

An Elementalist and Mediterranean Architecture

Icon for Sale - Loos Villa: Haus Horner

SPECIAL – Iconic Dreams Europe - Sleep in an Iconic House!

SPECIAL – Iconic Dreams North America - Sleep in an Iconic House!

SPECIAL – Dutch Delights!

SPECIAL - Vacances en France!

SPECIAL – German Greats!

SPECIAL - Casas Icónicas en España!

SPECIAL – Northern (High)Lights!

SPECIAL – Iconic Artist Residencies

SPECIAL – Iconic Collective Housing

SPECIAL – Women & Iconic Houses

Public Screenings and Private Streaming of Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House

Support the Frankfurt Declaration (on Housing)

Winy Wants a World Wonder

Welcome Atelier Volten!

Sleep in a Modernist Gem – Huis Billiet in Bruges

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - 100 Years Van Zessen House

Exclusive Tour and Film Screening Package

The Last House Designed by Adolf Loos Will Be Built in Prague

Icons of the Czech Avantgarde

Icon for Sale - Casa Legorreta

Rietveld Day: 200 Enthusiasts Explored 3 Utrecht Icons

Hurray! 10 Years Iconic Houses

7th International Iconic Houses Conference A Huge Success

Meet Conference Co-Chair Iveta Černá

Meet Conference Co-Chair Maria Szadkowska

Eighteen Iconic Houses Under One Roof

17 June - 'Pioneers-film' Screening Amersfoort

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Van Eesteren House Museum

Welcome Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky Zentrum in Vienna!

Welcome Vila Volman! Jewel of Czech Functionalism

Movie Night: Adolf Loos- Revolutionary Among Architects

'Inside Iconic Houses' Case Study House #26 Webcast in Webshop

Inside Iconic Houses at Taut’s Home in Berlin

Rediscovering Forgotten Loos Interiors in Pilsen

'Inside Iconic Houses' - Online Tour Program

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - The Diagoon House

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Rietveld Schröder House

Rietveld Houses Owners Association

Corberó Space: New Life for Hidden Jewel

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Pierre Cuypers' House and Workshops

Reeuwijk Celebrates Completion of Restoration Rietveld Homes!

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Van Doesburg Rinsema House

Welcome Rietveld's Van Daalen House!

Architect Harry Gessner Passed Away at 97

Watch Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House Now On Demand

Icon Saved: Dorchester Drive House

Welcome Umbrella House!

Iconic Houses in the Netherlands – Berlage’s Masterpiece

Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Het Schip

Inside Iconic Houses - Tour of Maison Cazenave

Inside Iconic Houses Tours Vizcaya Museum & Gardens in Miami

Casa Masó Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary

Inside Iconic Houses tours Roland Reisley's Usonian Frank Lloyd Wright House

Rietveld’s Experimental Housing in Reeuwijk Saved

Serralves Villa after restoration

Portraits of the Architect - Interview with Gennaro Postiglione

Test Labs for New Ideas - Interview with Natascha Drabbe

Inside Iconic Houses - Isokon Building

Inside Iconic Houses - 16 December: Sunnylands with Janice Lyle

BCN-BXL Coderch-De Koninck - Beyond Time

New Chairman Architect Nanne de Ru on The Perfect Platform

Health and Home - Interview with Beatriz Colomina

A Life Less Ordinary – Interview with Valentijn Carbo

Invisible Women - Interview with Alice T. Friedman

Winy Maas on the Green Dip

Anita Blom on Experimental Housing of the 1970s

Women’s Worlds - Interview with Natalie Dubois

The Culture of Living - Interview with Robert von der Nahmer

Hetty Berens: A Fresh Take on Modernism

Niek Smit on Supporting Modern Heritage

Alice Roegholt on Amsterdam’s Working-Class Palaces

July is Iconic Houses Month

Hans van Heeswijk on The Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House

Wessel de Jonge on Dutch Icons at Risk

Save Maison Zilveli - Sign the Petition!

How a Building Tells a Story - Recorded Event

Toolkit for Owners of a Modern House

13 Aalto Sites Nominated for UNESCO World Heritage

Villa Beer At Risk - Sign the Petition!

Business Cards of Stone, Timber and Concrete in the Brussels Region 1830-1970

Exhibiting & Visiting Modernist Monuments

Fostering Well-Researched Responsible Design

ICONS AT RISK

Enjoy a virtual visit to the California House and a Q&A with architect Peter Gluck

Exhibition 'Modernism and Refuge'

A Hidden Gem of Postmodernism

New Centre for Historic Houses of India

An Online Chronicle of the Douglas House

Villa Henny, geometric style icon in The Netherlands

A Mendini temple in Amsterdam

IH-lectures USA & Canada Feb 2020 on Melnikov House

Sponsors and Friends

An Afternoon with the Glucks

Chandler McCoy on Making Modern Houses Sustainable

Catherine Croft: Getting Away from the Demolition Mentality in the UK

Patrick Weber on Discovering an Unknown Icon

Fiona Fisher on Iconic Interiors

Jocelyn Bouraly on Villa Cavrois

Mireia Massagué on finding success through a new kind of partnership

Danish Moderns – Looking Back at Our Mini-Seminar

Venturo house complements Exhibition Centre WeeGee’s offering

Lecture report: Remembering Richard Neutra

Hôtel Mezzara and the Guimard Museum project

We welcome 13 new members!

BREAKING NEWS: 8 Wright Sites Inscribed on Unesco World Heritage List!

LECTURE 29 August - Raymond Neutra: My Father and Frank Lloyd Wright

Iconic Reads

Iconic Houses End Year Message

City-ordered rebuild of landmark house stirs debate: Appropriate or overreach?

Kohlberg House Restoration in Progress

Planned Demolition of Rietveld Homes in Reeuwijk

Renovation Gili House in Crisis

An Iconic Saga

Restoring Eileen Gray’s Villa E-1027 and Clarifying the Controversies

Modernism on the East Coast

Iconic Houses in Latin America

Conference testimonials

House Tours May 2018 

Expert Meetings

Natascha Drabbe - Iconic Houses: The Next Chapter

Terence Riley -KEYNOTE SPEAKER- on Philip Johnson

New era for Villa E-1027 and Cap Moderne

Hilary Lewis on Philip Johnson and his Glass House

John Arbuckle on Great House Tours

William D. Earls on the Harvard Five in New Canaan

Stover Jenkins on Working for Philip Johnson

Frederick Noyes on his Father’s House

Scott Fellows and Craig Bassam on their Passion for Preservation

Jorge Liernur -KEYNOTE SPEAKER- on Latin American Modernism(s)

Fabio Grementieri on Modernism in Argentina

Catalina Corcuera Cabezut on Casa Luis Barragán

Renato Anelli on Lina Bo Bardi’s Casa de Vidro

Tim McClimon on Corporate Preservation

Amanda Nelson on Building Donor Relationships

John Bacon on Planned Giving

Jean-Paul Warmoes on the Art of Fundraising in America

Chandler McCoy on Why Less is More

Katherine Malone-France on Moving with the Times

Anne Mette Rahbæk on Philanthropic Investments and Preservation

Peter McMahon on Saving Modern Houses on Cape Cod

Toshiko Kinoshita on Japanese Modern Heritage Houses

Roland Reisley on Life in a Frank Lloyd Wright House

5th Iconic Houses Conference May 2018

Kristin Stone, Pasadena Tour Company

Restoring the past: The Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo Home Studio

Behind the Scenes: Hendrick de Keyser Association

Crosby Doe, Architecture for Sale

Latin America Special – Focus on Mexico

De Stijl in Drachten

Preserving the Nancarrow House-Studio

Meet the Friends - Nanne de Ru

Latin America Special – Focus on Brazil

Jan de Jong’s House is Latest Hendrick de Keyser Acquisition

Stay in a Belgian Modernist Masterpiece

In Berlin’s Modernist Network

Rietveld-Schröder House Celebrates De Stijl Anniversary

Meet Our New Foundation Board Members

Maintaining Aalto's Studio – Linoleum Conservation

Virtual Tour of a Papaverhof Home in 3D

Getty Grant for Villa E-1027

Plečnik House in Ljubljana

Iconic Dacha

Iconic Houses: A Bohemian Road Trip

Work in Progress: Capricho de Gaudí

11 Le Corbusier Homes now on Unesco World Heritage List

At home with Le Corbusier

Henry van de Velde’s Study in Haus Hohe Pappeln Restored

Lynda Waggoner reports

A Conference to Remember

4th International Iconic Houses Conference

Guest of Honor - Harry Gesner

Fallingwater: European Lecture Tour

Wright Plus 2016 Walk

Susan Macdonald, Getty Conservation Institute

John Mcllwee, Garcia House

Meet the Friends – Elisabeth Tostrup

Iconic Houses: The Story So Far

Willie van Burgsteden, designer Iconic Houses

Buff Kavelman, Philanthropic Advisor

Meet the Friends - Frederick Noyes

Sheridan Burke, GML Heritage

Meet the Friends - Raymond Neutra

Sidney Williams, Frey House

Franklin Vagnone and Deborah Ryan, Museum Anarchists

Meet the Friends - James Haefner

Toshiko Mori, architect

Malachi Connolly, Cape Cod Modern House Trust

Meet the Friends - Penny Sparke

Lucia Dewey Atwood, Eames House

Cory Buckner, Mutual Housing Site Office

Jeffrey Herr, Hollyhock House

Speaking Volumes: Building the Iconic Houses Library

Sarah Lorenzen, Neutra VDL Studio and Residences

Ted Bosley, Gamble House

Keeping It Modern - Getty Conservation Grants

Meet the Friends - Thomas Schönauer

Wim de Wit, Stanford University

Linda Dishman, Los Angeles Conservancy

Jesse Lattig, Pasadena Heritage

Join us in Los Angeles! Update

Work in Progress: Casa Vicens

Work in Progress: Van Wassenhove House

Work in Progress: Villa Cavrois

Work in Progress: The Pearlroth House

Conference calls!

Follow us!

Third Iconic Houses Conference a huge success

Conference House Tours Barcelona

Marta Lacambra, Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera

Natascha Drabbe, Iconic Houses Foundation

Special speaker Oscar Tusquets

Jordi Tresserras, UNESCO Network ‘Culture, tourism and development’

Christen Obel, Utzon Foundation

Elena Ruiz Sastre, Casa Broner

Fernando Alvarez Prozorovich, La Ricarda

Tim Benton, Professor of Art History (Emeritus)

Susana Landrove, Docomomo Spain

Rossend Casanova, Casa Bloc

Conference Program 25 November 2014

Jordi Falgàs, Casa Rafael Masó

Documentary La Ricarda

Marga Viza, Casa Míla/La Pedrera

Celeste Adams, Frank Lloyd Wright Trust

Conference 25 November 2014 at La Pedrera

Henry Urbach, The Glass House

Victoria & Albert Museum London November 12

Tommi Lindh, new director of the Alvar Aalto Foundation and Museum

Iveta Černá, Villa Tugendhat

Lynda Waggoner, Fallingwater

Kimberli Meyer, MAK Center

Rent a house designed by Gerrit Rietveld

Barragán House on Screen

Gesamtkunstwerk – An Icon on the Move

Triennale der Moderne 27 September - 13 October 2013

Prestigious Art Nouveau mansions in Brussels open

September 14 + 15: Heritage Days in Paris

June's New Arrivals: Museum Apartments

Iconic Houses is now on Twitter and Facebook

Corbu’s Cabanon: Reconstruction and Lecture

Projekt Mies In Krefeld: Life-sized model of the Krefeld Clubhouse

New arrivals: Spain special

MAMO: Le Corbu’s ‘Park in the Sky’ open 12 June

Taut's Home wins Europa Nostra Award

Annual Wright Architectural Housewalk: 18 May

Frank Lloyd Wright Homes on Screen

Message from the Editor

Neutra’s House on Screen

Michel Richard, Fondation Le Corbusier

Symposium The Public and the Modern House

Melnikov House on Screen

Iconic Houses in the media

Message from the Editor

Round Table Review

Eileen Gray House on Screen

Copy Culture

At Home in the 20th Century

New 20th century Iconic Houses website launches

Philippe Bélaval, Centre des monuments nationaux

Posted December 1, 2022

Inside Iconic Houses at Taut’s Home in Berlin

Stream an exclusive online house tour inside this special house. Owners and curators of the tiny, museum-like holiday home, Katrin Lesser and Ben Buschfeld, point out the interior details tributing the work of Bruno Taut. Buy your ticket HERE.
And read the article about the restoration below the teaser.

 

A Heritage House for Short Stay Rental, Meticulously Restored and With 1920s Splendour

To classify the background of the project, one must know that Taut's Home is part of the UNESCO-listed ‘Hufeisensiedlung’ (Horseshoe Estate) in the district Berlin-Neukölln Britz. Of the total of six residential settlements with World Heritage status in Berlin, the Hufeisensiedlung is the only one in which—after the privatization of the former municipal housing company GEHAG and several takeovers of the entire portfolio on the stock exchange— terraced housing stocks were converted into individual ownership on large scale from 1999 onwards. This has the effect that over 600 private individuals today, own a part of this UNESCO World Heritage ensemble. The challenge to develop the house for heritage conservation has led to several activities and publications by the two owners of Taut’s Home, landscape architect Katrin Lesser and designer Ben Buschfeld, an enthusiastic couple that has lived in the estate for 25 years. They dedicated all those years to preserving and promoting the special value of 1920s modernism.

  • Aerial view of the Horseshoe-structure, 2014. Photo Ben Buschfeld
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, garden in front of the semi-detached terraced house
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, terrace in front of the kitchen window
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, living
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, authentic built-in cupboard and historical cooking facility
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, room with tiled stove
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, hallway view towards the kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, coloured details of the stairwell
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, study desk with a portrait of the architect
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, foldable bed in primary bedroom
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, bathroom
  • Aerial view of the Horseshoe-structure, 2014. Photo Ben Buschfeld
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, garden in front of the semi-detached terraced house
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, terrace in front of the kitchen window
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, living
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, authentic built-in cupboard and historical cooking facility
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, room with tiled stove
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, hallway view towards the kitchen
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, coloured details of the stairwell
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, study desk with a portrait of the architect
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, foldable bed in primary bedroom
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, bathroom

A Tribute to Bruno Taut
This terraced house at the end of the row with a slightly larger garden, is a lively, well-founded tribute to the architect Bruno Taut (1880-1938) with a lot of carefully chosen details. In 1924, Taut was appointed chief architect of the GEHAG housing company. In just a few years of practice, before the rise of National Socialism, he designed around 12,000 flats, the majority of which are listed monuments. In addition to listed status 3,543 of his dwellings even have UNESCO World Heritage status, because four of Berlin's six UNESCO World Heritage housing estates are largely based on his designs. With this quantitatively and qualitatively outstanding record, Bruno Taut may be considered the most important architect in Berlin housing construction of the early 20th century, even if—due to his early death in exile in Turkey in 1938—he was not able to really start a second career after World War II, which may limit his posthumous fame on an international scale. But of all the great architects of the 20th century, only Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd Wright are similarly prominently represented on the World Heritage List.

The Significance of the Hufeisensiedlung
The ensemble, covering some 28 hectares, is grouped around a 350-meter-long iconic structure curved in the shape of a horseshoe. It gave the settlement, built in 1925-30, its name and reminds many visitors of the "Bauhaus style"—a popular label, which, however, in no way does justice to the independence of the complex and Taut's special position in the transnational polycentric development of modernism. Also known as the ‘Britz Large Housing Estate’, the Hufeisensiedlung is not only considered Taut's most important work but is also the largest and best known of the six "Berlin Modernism Housing Estates" listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 2008.
Even at the time of construction, the complex was considered an icon of public housing oriented toward the common good. In addition to Bruno Taut, Martin Wagner (who later became the city planning director of Berlin) and the garden architect Leberecht Migge were involved in the design. In terms of building type, the ensemble of 1,263 multi-story apartment buildings and 679 terraced houses with gardens marks the transition from the reform-oriented garden city movement to a rationally planned, row-based large-scale housing development, as it then became internationally established in the 1930s, 50s, and 60s. At the Hufeisensiedlung these two ideologically opposing design maxims–artistic individuality vs. serial construction–were brought to a unique synthesis.

A Special Treat for Design and Architecture Lovers
With its socially, economically, and politically turbulent history, the estate is ideal for guided tours and study visits. This also makes Taut's Home the ideal starting point for exploring not just the immediate neighbourhood, but also Berlin's multifaceted architectural heritage. The city´s heritage includes various iterations of modernism and ranges from the industrial buildings of the late 19th century to important buildings of post-war modernism (in the East and West) as well as important buildings of brutalism, late modernism, and post-modernism.
A stay in the house, which is suitable for up to four people, allows guests to take in the colourfully varied ensemble in a very personal and peaceful way. To achieve that, furnishings also bring architectural and design history to life: The house is part of the sixth construction phase, which was built in 1929/30 in the form of parallel single-family terraced houses with gardens and cost-reducing flat roofs. The interior has been completely restored in Taut's distinctive colour scheme and furnished throughout in the style of the 1920s and 30s.

  • Europa Nostra Award for the restoration of Taut’s Home
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, before restoration, 2010
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, reconstruction of the missing tiled stove, 2010
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, state after the wallpapers have been torn off, 2011
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, documentation of the historic paint layers before restoration, 2010
  • Europa Nostra Award for the restoration of Taut’s Home
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, before restoration, 2010
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, reconstruction of the missing tiled stove, 2010
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, state after the wallpapers have been torn off, 2011
  • Taut’s Home Berlin, documentation of the historic paint layers before restoration, 2010

Interior Design and Furnishing
The house is only 65 sqm in size but convinces with a very functional and space-efficient floor plan. Modern comfort has been discreetly integrated. All colours in the interior were meticulously researched and restored strictly according to the well-documented findings. The colourfully resurrected rooms in strong cornflower blue, dark red, muted green and various shades of grey, white, and warm yellow are furnished throughout with original furniture or furniture reconstructed in the style of the 1920 and 30s.
The kitchen, which is suitable for self-catering, is a replica of the typical GEHAG kitchen designed by Bruno Taut for the Forest Estate in Berlin-Zehlendorf, which was begun six months later. During the reconstruction by a carpenter, modern kitchen amenities like a refrigerator or a dishwasher were discreetly integrated behind the historically appealing front doors. A special feature in the kitchen is also the red-coloured magnesite flooring, which has been restored according to the original recipe with a mixture of concrete, sawdust, and Ferro-oxygen-powder.
In the living and dining room, typical furniture from the Weimar Republic is gathered, joined by some modern classics, such as the first tubular steel furniture from the Bauhaus Dessau or a pending lamp by Sistrah. At the time the housing estates were built, central heating had not yet been installed. Instead, a tiled stove was installed in every living room and bedroom. These are complemented by black lacquered radiators, the design of which dates from 1930, the year the construction of the house was completed. This is another special feature of the house, which has an outstanding amount of original substance: Two of the original three tiled stoves were still intact and present. The third, green one was newly built from original tiles donated by neighbours.
Throughout the house, there are so-called ‘monument windows’ that allow to trace back the sequence of the individual coats of paint. In our case, we always restored the first coat using the high-quality mineral products of the Keimfarben, which were already in use at the time.
Another large piece of furniture, re-interpreted by the two landlords according to historical models, is the large folding bed in the blue room on the first floor. Here, the redesign is inspired by a photo printed in a publication from 1927, which presented a model flat for a similar small housing estate in Frankfurt am Main built in the same tradition. The sofa in the neighbouring yellow room, the former children's room, which can be extended to a small double bed with a width of 140 cm. This construction was inspired by a sofa from one of the master houses of the Bauhaus Dessau. All the furnishings, such as crockery, lamps, and small pieces of furniture, are originals from the 1920s and 30s and were bought from flea markets and antique dealers.
The garden is designed according to plans by the garden architect Leberecht Migge with fruit trees, herbaceous borders, and a rose hedge.
After two years of restoration, Taut's Home has been let for short stays to history and architecture enthusiasts since 2012. It offers space for 2-4 tenants, who can embark on a journey back in time to the era of emerging modernism. An opportunity that effectively complements Berlin's museum landscape and has been enthusiastically received by guests, the professionals, and the media on an international scale.

  • Ben Buschfed and Katrin Lesser with the Iconic Houses plaque at the entrance of their Taut’s Home
  • Postcard with Hufeisensiedlung doors. Photos Ben Buschfeld
  • Collage Berlin World Heritage Estates. Photos Ben Buschfeld
  • Taut’s Home floor plan
  • Ben Buschfed and Katrin Lesser with the Iconic Houses plaque at the entrance of their Taut’s Home
  • Postcard with Hufeisensiedlung doors. Photos Ben Buschfeld
  • Collage Berlin World Heritage Estates. Photos Ben Buschfeld
  • Taut’s Home floor plan

Awards
Despite the fact that the realization took place without any subsidies, today Taut´s Home is considered by officials to be the most active and lively ambassador of Berlin's newest world heritage site. The house and its two owners have been awarded several prizes, including the Golden Badge of Honour of the district of Neukölln, the Berlin Monument Price (twice), and in 2013 the prestigious European Union Prize for Monument Preservation / Europa Nostra Award. Being honoured with this award in the restoration category is special since it has only been granted to three out of more than 8,000 registered monuments in Berlin.
In her laudation for the local ceremony, the former Senate Building Director Regula Lüscher described the project as follows: "Tautes Heim (German version of "Taut´s Home") is a masterpiece of monument education. More impressively than any words, it brings the architecture of the 1920s back to life and convinces everyone who enters it of the value of modernism. Prejudices that modernism is inevitably cool, sterile, boring, are refuted by Tautes Heim in an unpretentious and at the same time powerful way with its colourfulness and many homely details."

Basic text: Ben Buschfeld.

Posted December 1, 2022