In addition to the impressive and decorative large villas and holiday homes, we can also find examples of smaller recreational architecture in Juodkrantė. It is believed that the “Gerlach” villa in Juodkrantė appeared after the World War I, though looking at the architecture, the project may have been prepared earlier. The seemingly modest holiday residence is one of the few buildings of Neringa, where the features German Jugendstil are reflected. The mezzanine of broken forms, a vertical of tripled windows in it, the use of the oval window and the bevelled edge of the building with a concaved top, reflect the early German construction trends not only in resort but also in suburban construction.
As it was usual for the buildings of this styling, the roof – of Dutch gabble. A wooden porch built at the corner of the building disrupts the building’s asymmetrical solution even more. Entering through the old remaining doors, we can see the retained stairs. Seen in the context of the whole town, the building, with its small volume, is like a compromise somewhere in the middle between the massive, high-rise buildings of Juodkrantė villas and the old traditional, small Neringa fishermen’s homesteads. We may realise the contrast between the architectural fashion, which existed in the first decades of the 20th century, by looking at the richly decorated, Swiss style villa “Hubertus” on the other side of the road.
Vila Gerlach - Kalno g. 2, Juodkrantė 93101, Lietuva
