Architectural Digest editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content.
Loss is one of the most powerful emotional forces that universally shapes what it means to be a human. Unavoidable, it touches all in death, relationships, or materially. But loss isn’t all grief and gloom; its presence offers perspective and appreciation. At its rarest, loss can lead to redemption, the most unexpected and dramatic possibility of all. With redemption comes the unlikely hope of regaining what was lost. As it relates to architecture, loss and redemption can deeply shape how a structure and space evolve.
For the contemporary, multidisciplinary artist Maximilian Magnus, the reality of both loss and improbable redemption are alive and well in his Treehouse Bavaria, a majestic studio situated in the southwestern Bavarian countryside, an hour outside of Munich. Nestled on five acres, the sprawling 5,000-square-foot artistic complex, where he produces his signature large scale abstract paintings, is not only a creative environment but also an expansive event space and rental retreat welcoming like-minded creatives and refuge seekers.
But the decades-long journey from his private family estate to today’s sweeping creative playground was a meandering one that included loss, artistic emergence, unlikely redemption, and architectural transformation.
Bavarian born, Magnus was raised in a family of painters and sculptors where aesthetics and creativity were celebrated. Within the very structure he now inhabits and creates from, music and ballet shaped his childhood and remain a central force in his work today.
With those early creative roots and following formal studies, he began producing works that carried him far beyond the Rhine, including extended artistic residences in São Paulo, Lisbon, and New York. Residencies included formative periods at the studios of some of the most influential figures in 20th-century abstract art, including at The Watermill Center with Robert Wilson and Lisa de Kooning’s artist in residency program on Long Island.
“Through my mother, I learned to see with my heart, beyond the visible, into the realm where feeling finds its voice. And in Robert Wilson’s world, I came to understand that through art, creation, and recreation, the impossible can be made possible,” Magnus says.
Acclaimed New York gallerist Todd Merrill, who has exhibited Magnus’s work over the years at his eponymous gallery, notes that, “Magnus uses the powerful and broad movements of his body as an expression of emotion, which is then transferred onto the canvas.”
As Magnus’s career was taking shape, a challenging chapter unfolded at home as his father’s financial challenges forced the family to give up the estate where he grew up. But in the years that followed, his professional path brought recognition and stability. Nearly 12 years later, he was presented with the unlikely chance to buy it back, a rare redemptive return home.
Since then, he has invested heavily in shaping a singular space that radiates both architectural character and artistic energy, echoing the creative spirit that surrounded his childhood.
Built in 1996 as an annex to a traditional Bavarian farmhouse, today the structure blends heritage and with contemporary style. Since the reacquisition, Magnus preserved its form but opened the facade with floor-to-ceiling windows and flooding the rooms with natural light. The textures evoke stone and concrete, with many finished by hand using techniques from Magnus’s scenic painting background.
The majestic two-story primary gallery and studio continue this style with a vaulted ceiling of lightly stained Bavarian spruce, conference tables, private creative spaces, a mezzanine walkway, and even a playful interior swing. The space regularly hosts other artists, corporate gatherings, private events, dinners, photoshoots, and celebrations, of course.The space
The studio wing extends this approach. Its scale and height support large canvases, and paths link the studio to the stables, workshop, and gardens. Art anchors the house, and the pieces Magnus created and acquired from Berlin and Copenhagen sit alongside vintage finds.
“I was not yet seven when I felt, deep within my soul, that it was my destiny to break through my family’s struggle to turn fear into safety, and scarcity into abundance. Inside and out, I suppose that became my lifelong mantra and is fully reflected in my work and the redesign of the estate,” Magnus explains.
Spread across the charming plot, which includes a large pond and pier, the sweeping studio has become more than a workplace. It is a setting for creation, gathering, and reflection, and the home to many feathered and furry companions, including horses, chickens, rabbits, cats, and many wild birds.
Outside, the terraces and swimming ponds were reshaped to feel like natural extensions of the interior. A treehouse garden stands on the grounds, where people and wildlife intersect. The artist residency folds naturally into this setting, giving visiting creatives a place to live and work as part of the landscape. Bookings and additional information are available here and on Instagram.
What began in the artistic environment of his family has come full circle in redemption. Reborn as a sanctuary, it now sustains his own work and supports the creative journeys of others, alive with the spirits of humans and the wild creatures that surround them.
