In Bauer's villa in Kolín, there will be a Gočár museum

Prague - The museum of the significant Czech architect Josef Gočár (1880-1945) will open at the end of June in the cubist Bauer villa in Libodřice near Kolín. Gočár designed it for the local estate owner Adolf Bauer between 1912 and 1914, and its reconstruction has now been completed. In addition to the exhibition about Gočár's work, a gallery of cubist design will also be created in the building.
    The reconstruction was carried out by the Czech Cubism Foundation since 2005, which owns the villa. The villa is a cultural monument and is the only rural cubist villa in the Czech Republic. Five other cubist villas are located in Jičín and Pelhřimov - by Pavel Janák, in Prague by Josef Chochol, in Lysá nad Labem by Emil Králíček, and in Olomouc by Rudolf Stockar. 
    The interiors of the Bauer villa will offer visitors an atmosphere from the early 20th century. Key elements of the exhibition include preserved interior features, primarily the bathroom fittings, fireplace installations, wooden built-in wardrobe, and library. During the conducted survey, wallpaper samples were discovered, based on which replicas have been made.
    The interior is complemented by period cubist furniture and exhibits of visual and applied arts. On the first floor, there is an exhibition dedicated to the history and reconstruction of the villa, Josef Gočár, and Czech cubism in general, as well as to modern architecture monuments in the region.
    The project of the Libodřice villa was likely created in the autumn of 1912, at the beginning of which Gočár designed the famous Prague House at the Black Madonna and a spa house in Bohdaneč. Experts note that the characteristic aspect of the look of Bauer's house is that the cubist forms are not limited to decorative framing of windows and the angled main cornice. Gočár intended to shape the entire volume of the villa cubistically.
    Cubist details are also present in the villa's interior - among the original furnishings, the fireplace, staircase, wooden built-in wardrobe, library, bathroom, central heating boiler, and laundry room have been preserved. During the reconstruction, wallpaper samples were also discovered, based on which their replicas were made.
    The villa was confiscated from Bauer's heirs during World War II as Jewish property and has housed the local administration since 1945. After 1948, the villa was also used as a branch library and kindergarten. In 2002, it was purchased by the Czech Cubism Foundation, which carried out a major reconstruction between 2005 and 2008 according to the design of Michal Sborwitz. Both the exterior and interiors were reconstructed with an effort to closely match the original appearance, and the surrounding land was restored and rare trees were rehabilitated.
    The reconstruction of Bauer's villa is part of the project Cubism in the Countryside, which is co-funded by the European Union and the Czech state. Support was also provided by the Central Bohemian Region.