The Villa Karma is situated in a prime location in a small park on the shores of Lake Geneva. Loos’s commission was to extend and convert an existing country house, called ‘La Maladaire’. At the time he was awarded the contract, in early 1903, there was already a building plan in existence, drawn up by Lavanchy, a local architect. This concept, which involved encasing the building on three sides and adding an extra floor, was subsequently adopted by Loos but the form of the new elements, the interior design and furniture were completely reworked. The entrance on the east side of the house is marked by a four-columned portico through which the visitor enters into an oval, double-height entrance area with yellow and red marble walls and a dome-like vaulted ceiling finished with gold mosaic. In the old part this leads into the hallway, with a cloakroom to the right and a niche with built-in seating under the stairs. Other rooms on the ground floor of the villa are the dining room, fireplace lounge and smoking room, the last two lit entirely by indirect light. To this core area narrow annexes were added — a glazed veranda facing the lake, and a mahogany and marble library on the south side. On the first floor, above the dining room and smoking room, is a large music room reached by a raised, gallery-like platform. Also on this floor are the private rooms, bedrooms, rooms with balcony, lady’s study and the famous black marble bathroom.

A disagreement with the client at the end of 1906 meant that Loos was not able to continue work on the second floor. Hugo Ehrlich took over the project and was mainly responsible for the landscaping. The building work was further aggravated by events involving the client, Dr Beer, a professor of physiology in Vienna: in 1904 he was accused of immoral conduct in a sensational court case and promptly left for America. Kraus and Loos were fervent supporters of Dr Beer in the ensuing debate, and Kraus’s book “Sittlichkeit und Verbrechen” (Morality and Crime) was largely initiated by these events.

Lustenberger, Kurt, Adolf Loos, Birkhauser Architecture, 1994

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