In Memoriam: Daniela Hammer-Tugendhat

In Memoriam: Austrian art historian Daniela Hammer-Tugendhat, wife of Ivo Hammer and the youngest daughter of Fritz and Greta Tugendhat, builders of the world-famous villa by architect Mies van der Rohe in Brno’s Černá Pole district, passed away at the age of 79.

Born in August 1946 in Caracas, Venezuela, where her parents had fled from the Nazi regime, Daniela Hammer-Tugendhat studied art history and classical archaeology at the universities of Bern and Vienna. In 1969, she accompanied her mother Greta to Brno, where she saw the family’s former villa for the first time. Together with her husband, Ivo Hammer, she became a key spokesperson for the Tugendhat family in matters concerning the villa’s preservation and future use that included a visit to Illinois Institute of Technology’s Mies Campus thanks to the generosity of Margaret and Dave Hensler, Mies Board members. She also played an active role in its restoration with Hammer, according to Iveta Černá, director of Villa Tugendhat. In 2015, she received the City of Brno Award. In 2022, Daniela and her husband Ivo were featured in the Mies Society’s epic virtual presentation: Interiors: Mies and Lilly Reich (Jason, please link to our Event page. I could not access it) More information, including the obituary, can be found on the Villa Tugendhat website here.

Ivo Hammer, Preservationist inspects buildings. Mies Campus, Illinois Institute of Technology.

Daniela Hammer-Tugendhat, Art Historian visits Mies Campus, Illinois Institute of Technology.