The gardens of the Tugendhat and Löw-Beer villas are connected by a turnstile

Brno - The neighboring gardens of the Tugendhat and Löw-Beer villas in Brno are now connected by a turnstile. To pass through, visitors need a ticket to the garden of the Tugendhat villa, which can now also be purchased at the Löw-Beer villa's ticket office. The representatives of the management of both villas and the city and regional leadership jointly opened the passage today.

Originally, the lands of both villas formed one whole. The older one, the Löw-Beer villa, was built in 1904 by industrialist Moriz Fuhrmann. The villa was accompanied by an extensive sloping land leading to what is now Černopolní Street. "In 1913, Alfred Löw-Beer bought the villa. He later donated the upper part of the land to his daughter Greta, who, along with her husband Fritz Tugendhat, had a new villa built here from 1928 to 1930 according to the design of the German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe," stated Vladimir Březina, the manager of the Löw-Beer Villa in Brno.

In recent decades, the gardens were separated. The Tugendhat villa is owned by Brno and is managed through the Museum of the City of Brno, while the Löw-Beer villa is owned by the region, which takes care of it through the Brno Museum. Entry to the garden of the Löw-Beer villa is not charged, unlike the garden of the Tugendhat villa, which is a UNESCO monument.

The status of the Tugendhat villa being included in the list of cultural heritage complicated the connection of both gardens. "Given the strict rules for the protection of the national cultural monument of the Tugendhat villa, the realization of the entire investment was not as simple as it might seem at first glance. The Museum of the City of Brno had to construct a new access path and lighting for the new turnstile, and enhance the security system of the villa. In total, it was an investment of two million CZK," said Tomáš Koláčný (Pirates), the deputy mayor of Brno.

Another million CZK was invested in the preparation for the connection of both gardens by the South Moravian Region, which modified the side of the Löw-Beer villa. "The South Moravian Region completed the preparatory work in the garden of the Löw-Beer villa back in 2018. For about one million CZK, an access walkway was built, garden lighting was expanded, benches and a play area for families with children were added," stated Tomáš Soukal (CSSD), the regional councilor for culture in South Moravia.

Thanks to the turnstile, visitors to the garden of the Tugendhat villa can extend their tour to include a visit to the Celnice gallery and the eponymous café in the garden of the Löw-Beer villa, and possibly a tour of the villa itself.