Junkerhaus, Lemgo

Posted by MadScientist (Düsseldorf, Germany) on 28 September 2008 in Architecture and Portfolio.

To divert suspicion from myself of presenting only Middle Ages architecture, churches and plants, I'll show you today something really different: this is a detail of the facade of Lemgo's Junkerhaus. Karl Junker (1850-1912) was kind of a universal genius, as he was designing, building, and decorating this house where he lived for 20 years. The carvings and decors you can see here extend into the interior of the house. There is virtually no corner in that house that hasn't been modeled by the artist. It's a very rough and colourful style, inspired by many fashions of the late 19th century. Junker created his own category of outsider art, unfortunately he left no notes on his oevre, and only few facts are known about him, leaving much room for anecdotes and legends. His house is a museum now; we had a guided tour and I was allowed to take many photos. Hope you'll like my selection.

--
Paul Newman died. Very sorry about this.

Download my coffee-table book of selected postings here. Enjoy!

Comments (18)

Michael Skorulski from Cigel, Slovakia

A fine image. I really like this facade and it must be fantastic inside. I like places like this which are so individualistic.

28 Sep 2008 5:16am

@Michael Skorulski: Fantastic indeed! But wait until you see its interior.

Laurent from Lyon, France

Very interesting house. So far I really enjoy the front. Looking forward to see the rest.

28 Sep 2008 6:41am

@Laurent: You won't be disappointed - highly original!

Linerberry from Sumner, Christchurch, New Zealand

Paul Newman, god rest his soul. I too was saddened.
This is a wicked design, its incredible the detail and you have captured it really well indeed. I'm looking forward to the rest of your visit:-))

28 Sep 2008 6:41am

@Linerberry: You'll like it! I've never seen a house like this before.

Ana Lúcia from Leiria, Portugal

Spectacular.

28 Sep 2008 7:29am

@Ana Lúcia: Wait until you see its interior!

Evelyne Dubos from Le Mans, France

Incredible architecture, never see that somewhere else... A sort of big puzzle, almost an abstract.

28 Sep 2008 10:44am

@Evelyne Dubos: This will continue in the different chambers. A very strange place!

Marie from FRESNES, France

jolie façade, très originale.

28 Sep 2008 12:01pm

@Marie: More about this tomorrow!

GJC from Kyoto, Japan

Remarkable place, and I like the way you've taken a portion here that suggests the whole. Nicely seen.

28 Sep 2008 12:53pm

@GJC: We had bad weather and awful light conditions on that day, the shots showing the house in total were not very convincing. I like this detail the most, it prepares well for the interior that I will present soon.

Jen from Alpharetta, United States

What an awesome place!

28 Sep 2008 1:13pm

@Jen: Absolutely. Wait for tomorrow, then we'll enter this house.

Nill@ from County Östergötland, Sweden

Interesting story!Yes I can see this is a specially design on this hous. A very colorfull photo.

28 Sep 2008 1:52pm

@Nill@: That's right! There was an extensive refurbishment some years ago to preserve the house from rotting.

JoeB from Brampton, Canada

The play of colours and shapes, especially the windows there so distinct.
Paul Newman was no politician or CEO his unselfishness achieved more than most of them will, a true leader.

28 Sep 2008 3:37pm

@JoeB: If I ever wanted an actor to become US president, he would have been in my top ten list.

Laurie from New Jersey, United States

Wow...what amazing lines and geometric shapes here. The combination of shapes and colors are really quite unique. Quite imaginative.

28 Sep 2008 4:26pm

@Laurie: Definitely a special place. You'll like the interior!

Twelvebit from Victoria, United States

This is great. Neat image.

28 Sep 2008 4:36pm

@Twelvebit: Tomorrow we will be entering that house.

hesam from Qazvin, Iran

great shot;)and nice color

28 Sep 2008 5:48pm

@hesam: Thanks, hesam, much appreciated!

Observing from West Cheshire, United Kingdom

Intriguing as to how the design of the facade came about....? it's very unorthodox. The image is good.

28 Sep 2008 10:38pm

@Observing: There's not many we know about this guy, his style is very special. Don't know if I'd like to live in that house, but I like its otherness.