Located in one of the weel-to-do street of Strasbourg, this superb
villa has been erected for Oscar Schutzenberger
(1).It is one of the first art nouveau building by Berninger & Krafft and brought them fame. With its jutting and low slope roof, this house looks like an italian villa. The façades visible from the street are of french limestone (Savonnières) and are adorned with easter lilies. The window sills end like a coma, meanwhile the
ironwork show arum lilies. The rear
façades, although more restrained, show some sculpted decor. Take a look to the openings of the forebody at the second floor: they are sustained with metallic
columns: those elements have been formerly used in Brussels by Horta for the Tassel mansion (1895). The villa's
entrance brings to a
lobby flooded by naturel light, is representative of the social rank of the owner: impressive
stair with marble and
stucco,
art nouveau tiles on the walls, and a ceiling adorned with outstanding
stuccos showing a frieze with lilies. Also noticeable: two column-radiators on both sides of the entrance door. Horta will use such an element in a more refined way for his own house in Brussels (1898-1901). Also give a look to the janitor's house: it is in stylistic continuity with the villa.
(1) Louis Oscar Schutzenberger (1866-1943) owned a brewery, which still exists at Schiltigheim.
Bibliography
- GROTRIAN S. Art Nouveau architecture in Strasbourg in The Connoisseur, octobre 1978, pp. 88-97
- HENRY J. et al. Flâneries estivales à savourer in Strasbourg Magazine, nº112 (Juillet-Août 2000), pp. 34-35
- PERILLON M.-C. Clins d'-il 1900 à Strasbourg in La Maison d'Alsace, nº8 (Mai-Juin 1977), pp.47-58
- RAGUENET A. Monographies de bâtiments modernes, nº 146
- WENDT H. Jugendstil in Stra-burg in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 1972, nº271, 13
- Die Architektur des XX. Jahrhunderts - Zeitschrift für Moderne Baukunst, 1902, nº19
- MENTEN T. Art nouveau decorative ironwork, Dover, New-York, 1981
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Villa O. Schützenberger