Liebermann-Villa on Lake Wannsee

Max Liebermann (1847-1935) bought the land for his house at the age of 62, intending to build a summer home in one of Berlin's most exclusive villa districts. He and his family moved into the house in the summer of 1910, and spent every summer here until his death in 1935. Designed and built by Paul Otto Baumgarten (1873-1946), the house is surrounded by greenery, including an intimate cottage garden, flower terrace and lakeside lawn. Liebermann drew frequent inspiration from his summer surroundings, and frequently painted the landscape, in whose development he had taken an active interest, choosing red geraniums to create a colour accent.

After the artist's death, the Liebermann Villa was appropriated by the Nazis, who converted it to a variety of uses, including as a military hospital. It was returned to Liebermann's daughter in 1951, but it was not until 1995 that the Liebermann Society succeeded in having the house listed. It opened as a museum in 2006, after a major restoration, which uncovered the mural Liebermann himself had painted in 1911. Today, It displays a selection of Liebermann's paintings, alongside a history of the artist's life as a head of the Berlin Secession.