In 1930, Hans Scharoun designed the house for Fritz Schminke who was the owner of a pasta factory in Loebau, Saxony, Germany and who wished for "… a modern house for two parents, four children and one or two occasional guests… ". The realization was both at the same time, fancy and functionally adequate. A curved main body, terraces, outside stairs and numerous round, porthole shaped windows inspire the connotation to a steamship. Rooms merge flowingly; generous grasslands involve the garden as an extension of living space as well.
In 1945, the Russian Army confiscated the house and it became a Soviet Army military commander’s office. The Schminkes got the house back in 1946 but, at the same time, Fritz was expropriated from his Anker pasta factory. He returned from Russian war captivity in 1948 and left the former GDR in 1950. He was regarded as a war criminal for being a supplier to the German Army Wehrmacht during World War II. His wife followed him and both of them lived in Celle, Lower Saxony, in 1951. The house was then expropriated again in 1952 until the Schminke daughters waived their right to reverse transfer of ownership on the house in 1993, thus providing the igniting spark for today’s public use.
joaoslr says
In 1930, Hans Scharoun designed the house for Fritz Schminke who was the owner of a pasta factory in Loebau, Saxony, Germany and who wished for "… a modern house for two parents, four children and one or two occasional guests… ". The realization was both at the same time, fancy and functionally adequate. A curved main body, terraces, outside stairs and numerous round, porthole shaped windows inspire the connotation to a steamship. Rooms merge flowingly; generous grasslands involve the garden as an extension of living space as well.
In 1945, the Russian Army confiscated the house and it became a Soviet Army military commander’s office. The Schminkes got the house back in 1946 but, at the same time, Fritz was expropriated from his Anker pasta factory. He returned from Russian war captivity in 1948 and left the former GDR in 1950. He was regarded as a war criminal for being a supplier to the German Army Wehrmacht during World War II. His wife followed him and both of them lived in Celle, Lower Saxony, in 1951. The house was then expropriated again in 1952 until the Schminke daughters waived their right to reverse transfer of ownership on the house in 1993, thus providing the igniting spark for today’s public use.
Photo source
Crossposted from /r/ModernistArchitecture