Top Art, Fashion and Design Events in Germany in 2010
Carnival – Germany’s 5th Season Thrives in Germany: From February 11 to 15 Carnival reigns in Germany. “Fasching”, “Fasnacht” or “Karneval” are all terms used to describe carnival, an ancient tradition which started out as the last feast before the abstinence period leading to Easter, which is celebrated all over Germany but particularly in the Rhineland and in the strongly Catholic regions of Germany including Mainz, Cologne, Duesseldorf, Bonn and the Black Forest. Customs differ from region to region, but it always involves crazy or traditional costumes, parades and celebrations.
The “fifth season” of Carnival actually begins on November 11 and ends on Ash Wednesday, each year. Carnival season reaches its peak in February with the parades and celebrations on Rose Monday (February 15) and ends two days later on Ash Wednesday. www.germany.travel
Feature: Creative Germany – Top Art, Fashion and Design Events in 2010
Germany is world famous for its cutting edge innovations and design. ‘Creative Germany’ today is more than ever a center for new developments in fashion, art and design. Some of the most innovative and inspiring fairs and events 2010 are held in Germany and invite the world of artists, professionals and spectators.
February 12 -16: Ambiente in Frankfurt am Main is the world’s biggest consumer goods exhibition and it features a fantastic array of products, new ideas and trends in dining, living and giving. Visitors to the trade fair can also see the works nominated for the Germany’s Design Award. http://ambiente.messefrankfurt.com
April 21 – 25: The Art Cologne has evolved into Germany’s major art fair and is one of the world-wide highlights in terms of contemporary art and new ideas. About 180 galleries from Germany and around the world present modern classics, post-war art and contemporary art. Art Cologne offers an exciting mixture from painting, sculpture, installations, video art to photography. www.artcologne.com
June 9 – 13: With more than 550 designers from over 30 nations, the DMY International Design Festival Berlin has grown into the largest product design festival in Germany. It is one of the most important international platforms for creative, experimental and forward thinking design that developed from a visionary nucleus of leading creative thinkers from the vivid Berlin design scene. In 2010 the Festival takes place in its new venue, the Kraftwerk in Berlin Mitte district, a former power plant with more than 10,000 square feet of event space on three floors. www.dmy-berlin.com
October 29 – 31: The Designer’s Open in the up and coming city of Leipzig in Germany’s east is setting new trends. More than 150 national and international designers present their latest work in the fields of interior design, fashion design, industrial design and communication design at the 54,000 square feet floor area of the centrally located Merkurhaus – a unique convenient store building. A vast program with lectures, off-site event locations (and parties in the evenings complemented the fair that attracts more than 10.000 visitors. www.designersopen.de
Feature: Meissen’s 300th Anniversary and Porcelain in Germany
Porcelain, the white gold is part of Germany’s legacy as a leader in design and handicrafts. In 2010 the world-famous Meissen Porcelain Manufacturer near Dresden celebrates its 300th anniversary with special exhibitions and events throughout the year.
Founded in 1710 the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory is one of the most successful German brands in the world. The production center and its connected museum offer a great insight into the history and presence of the brand. Celebrating its 300th anniversary there are several large exhibitions in Meissen and Dresden. One highlight is the exhibition “Triumph of the Blue Swords” at the Japanisches Palais in Dresden (May 8 – August 29). It focuses on the first 100 years of the manufacturer and will show large parts of the rich holdings of porcelain collections that are usually in storage and not publicly displayed. The exhibition also includes loans from museums and collections around the globe. Further exhibitions include the “All Nations are Welcome” exhibition in Meissen (January 23 – December 31), “Philosopher’s Stone” collection in the original factory in Castle Albrechtsburg near Dresden (May 8 – October 31) and an exhibition with 500 pieces in the Ephraim Palace in Berlin (May 9 – August 29). http://friedrich.meissen.com
Porcelain is a major attraction throughout Germany with special routes, museums and manufactories allover the country! Another highly acclaimed porcelain factory is based in Munich, in the beautiful Nymphenburg Palace. For 260 years the Nymphenburg manufactory produces dinner services and figurines for the Bavarian kings. All pieces are hand-made since the 18th century, using techniques that have scarcely changed over the years. Nymphenburg designs have been considered masterpieces ever since the factory’s beginnings thanks to its continuous collaboration with celebrated artists. At the adjacent museum more than 1,000 pieces of Nymphenburg porcelain from different periods are exhibited. www.nymphenburg.com/us/nymphenburg/
Several smaller porcelain producers offer a close look into the art of making the white gold and visitors can even try it themselves. At the Fuerstenberg factory in northern Germany near Hanover visitors can explore three centuries of porcelain making in the museum adjoining the factory, where both historical and current collections are on show and pottery courses are available. www.fuerstenberg-porzellan.com
The Ludwigsburg factory is located in a magnificent royal palace to the north of Stuttgart. Visitors can attend guided tours of the factory at which every piece of porcelain is made and decorated entirely by hand. www.porzellan-manufaktur-ludwigsburg.de
Germany also boasts two Porcelain Routes linking places of interested associated with the manufacturing of porcelain. Along the 340 mile long route in the north-east of Bavaria visitors can discover famous factories such as Arzberg and Rosenthal or visit the Porzellanikon museum complex in Selb, a former Rosenthal porcelain factory which closed in 1969 and now houses the European Industrial Museum of Porcelain, the Rosenthal Museum and the European Museum of Technical Ceramics. www.porzellanstrasse.de
A second themed route in Thuringia features factories where porcelain is made and decorated and where visitors can visit factory outlets, demonstration workshops and several museums. www.thueringerporzellanstrasse.de
February 1, 2010
Posted in: Germany