100 years architecture in Rotterdam
1905: Wagnerhof
On the Vijverlaan in Kralingen 5 sets of semi-detached
villas have been uit and named after Wagner operas: Tanhauser and Lohengrin,
Walküre
and
Wotan, Siegfried and Rheingold, Tristan and Isolde, Rïenzli and Parzifal. Modest
in there appearance, in sort of Vienese Secession Style (called Jugendstil
or Art Nouveau elsewhere), they are white washed, with their names in golden
letters high up on the facade. These villas have been commisioned by
industrialist Dulfer, who was a big Wagner fan and who aimed to cover a niche in
the real estate business in that period of time. He bought the Villa Nuovo and
renamed it Villa Wagner. He had architect Van Teefelen to design the villa park.
In order to prevent that the quite back lane would ever be connected with the
Hoflaan, Dulfer had the villas Siegfried and Rheingold built across it thus
cutting off from the thoroughfare. This makes this are an oasis of quiet
retaining a special atmosphere.
Van Teeffelen also designed the Villa Park near railway station Rotterdam Noord along the Ceintuurbaan.
