Asta Nielsen House "Karusel"

The Asta Nielsen House in Vitte - one of a total of four houses built by architect Max Taut. In addition to the island's wedding room, the Asta Nielsen House houses an exhibition on the Danish silent film diva Asta Nielsen and the architect Max Taut. The house was built in Vitte in 1922/23 as a summer house for the Berlin family Richard Müller. In 1929, Richard Müller sold the vacation home to the famous Danish actress Asta Nielsen. She often spent several months of the summer here on the island with her daughter and husband. Within a short time, the house became a meeting place for friends and acquaintances of Asta Nielsen, such as Joachim Ringelnatz and his wife, Heinrich George and Gerhart Hauptmann. When the National Socialists seized power in 1933, Asta Nielsen turned her back on Germany and left the house in 1935 (1936), complete with all its contents. During the war years and after until 1961, around 15 families, mostly war refugees, lived in the house one after the other. Most of Asta Nielsen's furnishings disappeared during this time. Only a few pieces of her furniture remained. From 1962, the municipality rented the building to the Ehmer couple, who were teachers. Renovations and alterations became necessary when the building was converted into a year-round residence. The fireplace was replaced by a tiled stove and gas heating was installed in 1995. In 1975, the Asta Nielsen House was placed under a preservation order. In 1989, the municipality acquired the house from the heirs of Asta Nielsen. After the building was vacated in May 2009 and had been empty for years, it was extensively renovated inside and out in 2014/15. Since then, it has housed the wedding room and an exhibition on Max Taut and Asta Nielsen. Admission: € 2.50 per person Guided tour: € 7.00 per person (admission + guided tour) Limited number of persons: 8 OPENING HOURS closed from 30.10.2020