Facade

The tenement house at 37 Piotrkowska Street in Łódź is not only an example of Art Nouveau architecture, but also a real treasure trove of fine details that tell their own stories. The façade of this building, designed by Gustaw Landau-Gutenteger, is a rich collection of floral, mythological and ornamental motifs that not only impress with their aesthetics but also intrigue with their symbolism. A close look reveals an extraordinary variety of details, from expressive representations of mythological figures to subtly incorporated floral elements, which together form a harmonious whole, full of hidden meanings and artistic references.

Omphalas

It is easy to recognise the identity of the man wearing the skin of a lion, like armour. This is a classic representation of Hercules, clad in the uncut skin of a Nemean lion, stripped from the beast as part of one of the hero’s labours. But a woman in a lion’s skin? There is only one answer to this conundrum – she is Omphale, the mythical queen of Lydia, initially the owner of Hercules, who was relegated to the role of slave, and later his betrothed. Artists portrayed the pair in a distinctive way, swapping the characters’ attributes in places – Hercules gaining female robes and a spinning wheel with a spear (or other spinning-related artefact), while Omphale gaining a mace and a lion’s skin. In this case, all we see is the muzzle of the animal above the forehead of the woman, shown wearing her hair in utrefied hair, a necklace of beads and coins, against a background of fleshy foliage. This is probably the only city-scale depiction of Omfala on a building façade.

Cord ornaments

Nowadays, we treat rope only as a utilitarian element of practical use, but once upon a time it was possible to marvel at the beauty of its form, the plasticity of its material and the wide range of possible transformations – even something as simple as tying a knot. This is how string ornaments were born, numerous and surprising examples of which can be found on the façade of the building. At the base of the bay window, two female masks were decorated in this way, forming rope necklaces and headdress ornaments. Tied in knots, the ropes form the frame of the first and second floor windows. Perhaps the most interesting example, however, are the capitals of the columns at the top of the bay window, in the form of braids formed from twine and sprinkled with the fruit of apple branches.

Pine twigs

Many of the buildings designed by Gustav Landau-Gutenteger feature two plant species he was particularly fond of – apple trees and pine trees. It is no different in the case of the building at 37 Piotrkowska St. The motif of pine branches, easy to recognise due to their long needles and shapely cones, recurs in many places on the façade, including in the frame of the gate’s lintel and the lintels of the second-floor windows. The elements are rendered realistically, emphasising the wavy lines characteristic of the Berlin Art Nouveau variety.

Geometrised plants

The beginning of the 20th century marked the birth of Łódź Art Nouveau. It emerged in relation to two strong cultural centres – Berlin and Vienna. In the former, there was a fashion for light, fanciful forms, strongly stylised, built on soft, wavy lines. In contrast to these trends was Vienna, where the search for New Art and the fascination with nature were combined with the cult of geometry. This was the origin of the fashion for plants inscribed in the shape of geometrical figures, growing as if ‘on frames’. There are many examples of this on the façade, perhaps the most prominent of which are the decorations under the windows of the first and third floors, as well as the characteristic rectangular acanthus at mid-height of the bay window.

Leaves and buds of the water lily

In many of Gustav Landau-Gutenteger’s works, we find references to the element of water. This is not so much a literal motif of foaming waves or rapid river currents, but rather symbolism and associations with specific figures and plants. In the case of the façade of the building we are looking at, there are at least two examples. One is the decoration above the windows of the lowest bay storey. In the header composed of rolled sashes and stylised volutes, leaves and buds of the water lily – popularly known as nenuphar, probably the most popular water plant in Poland – are inscribed.

Sea monster

Another reference to the element of water is… the sea monster, hidden among the coils of draped ribbon beneath the fourth-floor windows. The distinctive horns-fins, the eye sockets, the open, fish-like snout with its long moustache and the rope harness around its gills all show not only the creator’s imagination, but also the reverence with which the decorations were approached, even those we cannot see with the naked eye.

Flower and fruit garland

The garland is one of the most classic architectural details, whose popularity has remained essentially unwavering over the centuries. Its form gracefully combined the rich, exotic, yet tame and symbolic world of plants with ideas of decoration, splendour, prosperity and good luck. In this case, we are dealing with a bundle composed of massive leaves and a variety of fruits tied with a ribbon. The list of species includes apples, melons, pineapples, pears, pomegranates and smaller, globular fruits – perhaps apricots or plums.

Headpiece with lion

One of the longest-established zoomorphic motifs in architecture is the lion. It owes its popularity not only to its eye-catching beauty, but also to the rich symbolism associated with the animal’s appearance and behaviour. Its magnificent mane evoked associations with the sun (and therefore the sacred sphere), and its majestic movements and strength – associations with power, dignity and valour. The lion motif was often used to ward off evil and therefore in an apotropaic (protective) function. On the façade, it can be seen in the pediments above the first-floor windows, in the form of a mask placed against a background of scaled acanthus leaves.

Female masks in the finial

In addition to Queen Omfale, two other female portraits can be seen on the façade of the building. The finial of the building features a row of masks depicting gently smiling figures with flowing, wavy hair, adorned with ribbons or rings, entwined with architectural elements in the background of the decoration. Interestingly, the rope ornament was also used here, with the addition of a magnificent bracken, which is neither an adornment of the bodice in a kind of breastplate, nor a witty reference to the shape of the girl’s body.

Female masks in bay window supports

The mass of David Shmulevich’s building owes its characteristic shape to the massive bay window and the imposing helmet crowning the four-storey edifice. The bay window rests on brackets decorated with stylised volutes and a pair of female masks. This last element is worth paying more attention to. What is puzzling and not obvious is the facial expression inscribed in the portrait – neither angry nor thoughtful, certainly – which distinguishes it from the other faces on the building – devoid of coquetry. The woman’s headdress is shaped like a boat (no coincidence?) and is topped with a round, five-petalled flower, from which decorative cords diverge, entwining under her chin in the shape of a necklace. The face is framed by short strands of wavy hair, from which two long ribbons with curled ends flow down to the chest.

Masquerade

The multi-storey bay closes with a balcony decorated with a metal balustrade, on which four massive rusticated columns are set. Their capitals have been given a unique, surprising form, which remains almost invisible from the perspective of the ground floor. The finial was composed with a rope tied to fruiting apple trees; in this setting, mature male faces are depicted, stylised as mascarons with disproportionate, drawn, open mouths from which long tongues hang. The elaboration and framing of the motif evoke associations with the figure of Satyr, a fertility deity from the retinue of Dionysus.