Philip Johnson’s Wolfhouse is for rent on Airbnb

Fans of Modernism can book a weekend stay in the refurbished Wolfhouse, restored as a New York holiday retreat.

Philip Johnson designed the Newburgh home in 1949 for Ruth and Benjamin V Wolf, a wealthy department store owner who requested a modern country residence that would capture views of the Hudson River.

The Wolfhouse, as it became known, was completed in the same year as Johnson’s seminal Glass House in New Canaan started construction, and the two share many of the same architectural expressions, including free-flowing open circulation and floor-to-ceiling glass walls that integrate the scenery with the interior.

Johnson’s legacy has gone through a reckoning in recent years, following a string of articles and biographies revealing the extent of his fascist sympathies throughout the 1930s, including trips to Nazi rallies in Germany and establishing the Gray Shirts – based on the Nazi Brownshirts.

These uncomfortable revelations (rumours long suppressed by powerful friends) have forced some to separate Johnson the designer from Johnson the man; others feel it casts his architectural legacy in an inextricably complex light.

Rather than shy away from his complicated and hurtful legacy, owners Jeremy Parker and Jiminie Ha chose to turn the house into an inviting space for all – firstly as a BIPOC-led arts hub and also as a holiday stay, welcoming travellers from all corners of the globe to the Hudson Valley.

The pair bought the house in 2020 and set about renovating the Wolfhouse inside and out, working directly from floorplans and photographs found in the archive of Columbia University to return it to its near-original state.

Wolfhouse sleeps up to six people across four bedrooms and is for rent from around $1110 per night via Airbnb, with a two-night minimum stay. Its airy spaces are curated as a ‘living showroom’ for furniture and artworks, including its kitchen by USM Modular Furniture, made entirely with reused and recycled parts.

[Sources: Dwell + Designboom]