'Great-grandmother of modern architecture': Villa Tugendhat marks 25 years on UNESCO list
The iconic Villa Tugendhat in Brno is marking 25 years on the UNESCO World Heritage List with a three-day celebration starting this Friday. The programme includes concerts, art installations and a unique videomapping show on the facade of the villa, considered a masterpiece of Modernism.
Villa Tugendhat, designed by the renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, was completed in 1930 and has been on UNESCO's World Heritage List since 2001. It remains the only standalone modern building in the Czech Republic on the list.
To celebrate the anniversary, the villa has joined forces with its neighbours, the Arnold and Löw-Beer villas, for a three-day programme of cultural events. The celebrations also coincide with the 140th anniversary of the birth of Mies van der Rohe.
The programme includes concerts in the gardens, art installations, and cafés open to the public in all three villas. But the main attraction will be an evening videomapping show spread across the three buildings, says Iveta Černá, the head of Villa Tugendhat.
"Each villa will feature a different theme presented through the videomapping. Villa Löw-Beer will showcase UNESCO tangible and intangible cultural heritage from across South Moravia, for example the craft of blueprinting or the folk dance Verbuňk. Villa Arnold will be adorned with an artistic, abstract and creative installation.
"In the case of Villa Tugendhat, our team collaborated with the creators on the storyboard for the videomapping. We would like to highlight the house's special steel construction and, of course, famous quotes from the world-renowned architect will not be missing either."
For Iveta Černá, however, the UNESCO anniversary is about more than just celebrating the villa's international recognition. She says the inscription has also helped shape the way the building is preserved and managed.
"You know, being a member of the UNESCO World Heritage family is above all a mark of the highest quality. It has had a major impact not only on tourism, but especially on the quality of access to the heritage. It has influenced the methods of restoration and management, and so on.
"I have to say we have already come a long way, and we remain mindful that we are the stewards, or caretakers, of this property. It's our duty to extend the life of Villa Tugendhat, which will soon celebrate its 100th anniversary as the great-grandmother of modern architecture."
That sense of responsibility has been central to Iveta Černá's work at Villa Tugendhat. Her efforts to restore and preserve the villa have earned her both national and international recognition.
The same approach is reflected in the way the villa manages its visitors. Although nearly 60,000 people visit every year, access has to be carefully controlled to protect the precious building.
"We have special visitor guidelines in place, and we have to continue to maintain and repair the house as best we can. This means that a maximum of 16 visitors are allowed on interior tours at a time.
"We also carry out repairs according to a special maintenance plan. The number of people who can tour the house is therefore strictly limited, and unfortunately the tickets are usually sold out three months in advance."
For anyone planning to visit, most of the weekend's programme is open without advance booking. Only guided tours of Villa Tugendhat and the accompanying exhibitions require an online reservation.
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South Moravia Region
A region of wine, beautiful UNESCO-listed castles and the Moravian metropolis Brno.
