cp architektur

Description

With the Villa Beer, cp architektur restored one of the key works of modernism in Austria. The project was based on detailed analysis of the building fabric carried out by a team of conservators. The aim was to understand the villa’s architectural qualities and to develop a sustainable, heritage-sensitive conservation concept. Central to the process was the careful handling of the historic fabric while meeting modern requirements for opening the villa to visitors as a museum. In the areas to be presented to the public, the villa was restored to its 1930 condition following extensive analysis, in order to make the original spatial sequence perceptible again. The sight lines planned by the villa’s architect, Josef Frank, were uncovered or – true to the original – emphasised through the installation of floor-to-ceiling curtains. Historic building elements such as flooring, windows and radiators were restored, or dismantled, catalogued and reinstalled. The basement was transformed into an accessible museum and reception area; beneath the terrace, a climate-controlled archive was created for the Villa Beer Foundation’s collection. In collaboration with the interior design company Svenskt Tenn, the rooms were generously outfitted with furniture and fabrics by Josef Frank that are still being produced today. In the future, artist-in-residence programmes will be held here on premises that evoke a modern lifestyle inspired by Frank’s design philosophy.