The Oppenheim House Foundation Act has already been signed! In September 2017, the Oppenheim House will be finally restored and open to the public as the Op Enheim Foundation Culture Centre, a private institution that supports Polish-German cultural projects. 1000 sqm in size, the house's interiors will be converted into exhibition spaces, a concert hall, apartments for resident artists and a restaurant or café.
Viola Wojnowski, the President of the Op Enheim Foundation, which purchased the building in April 2013, says that the feels personally responsible for the site and its awe-inspiring history. "Historic buildings are rarely bought as an investment. We won the tender with a bid of 5.5 million PLN and the refurbishment and restoration works will cost two or three time the amount," says Viola Wojnowski.
The house will be open to the public as of September 2017. By this time, the interior of this 13th-century historic building will have undergone thorough renovation (they will be supervised by the master of artistic carpentry Leszek Ukleja). Throughout the works, the Baroque floors have beed discovered (their undulating texture will be restored), the original ceilings will be exposed (which is unique in the whole Market Square area) and the door frames will be fitted out with metal mezuzahs (small containers in which passages from the Tora were preserved). The latter's presence is no coincidence, since from 1890–1940 the building housed the Oppenheim Foundation (set up by the celebrated bankers' family), which specialised in charity. The plan to renovate the outhouses also seems promising. The facility will be thoroughly roofed and the widows overlooking the yard, each in a different architectonic style (from Baroque to the contemporary), will be decorated suitably. The Culture Centre's interiors will be designed by one of Berlin's most celebrated architecture studios J. Mayer H., the winner of the Red Dot Design Award 2012. A lift will also be installed (the concert hall will be located in the upper storeys of the building).
Signed on Wednesday 28 September, the Oppenheim House Foundation Act has been supplemented with a letter to Steffi Herz, whose grandparents lived in the building while her parents ran a famous shoe shop called "Schuh Herz", which was famous for its characteristic heart logo (the shop's photograph was added to the foundation act capsule). Following Kristallnacht, Steffi Herz left Breslau and is now living in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
It was very difficult to let the house because of its characteristic design (connecting rooms). To date, three lessees have been revealed, including two specialising in culture and Polish-German activity. Additionally, as a public benefit company, the Op Enheim Foundation will we open to many cultural initiatives and all of those who wish to participate or volunteer in them. "The house is going to promote European values," says Viola Wojnowski. To date, the Op Enheim Foundation has organised a concert series at Luneta (followed by both the Wroclaw and Berlin audiences) as part of the European Capital of Culture Wroclaw 2016.
