Special exhibition "More than Bricks! Tradition and Future of Architectural Ceramics" finally opens! Porzellanikon Selb, 20 March to 3 October 2022

On two times 300 square metres, the special exhibition "More than Bricks!" is dedicated to the "Tradition and Future of Architectural Ceramics". It runs at Porzellanikon Selb from 20 March to 3 October 2022. People have been using self-made building materials made of various ceramic materials for over 9,000 years. Ceramics are thus one of the oldest and most diverse building materials in the history of mankind. They were quickly used to create more than just functional buildings. The building techniques became more sophisticated over time, the buildings were and are canvases for architects and artists and represent the joy of design with this material. 

"We are very pleased to present our new special exhibition "More than Bricks! Tradition and Future of Architectural Ceramics" to finally open," says Museum Director Anna Dziwetzki. "Together with our curator Thomas Miltschus, we were able to put together some very special exhibits that offer our visitors unique insights into the world of architectural ceramics," Dziwetzki continues. The exhibition is dedicated both to building facades designed with the help of ceramics, which are a crucial part of our daily lives, and to the artistic design of interiors. Like on a city tour, the museum guests marvel at various façades of buildings that still exist today as well as buildings that are already history. The second floor of the special exhibition is dedicated to ceramic interiors.

"In addition to Thomas Miltschus and Christoph Uhlig, I would like to thank my entire team and our sponsors - the Ernst von Siemens Art Foundation, the company HART Keramik AG as well as the Sparkasse Hochfranken and for the financial contributions, without which our new special exhibition would not be what it is," Anna Dziwetzki thanks colleagues and sponsors.

Dr Jana Göbel, Head of EU Projects and Digitisation at Porzellanikon adds: "We are glad that the exhibition is starting now. The idea for it came out of the EU project "Ceramics and its Dimensions", in which our house was the lead partner from 2014 to 2018." With the exhibition, the content developed in the project will also be made accessible to our museum visitors. For experts, a symposium will be offered as part of the special exhibition in July 2022.

Exhibits from Germany and Europe
A total of 80 exhibits from Germany and Europe are on display in the special exhibition. The centrepiece of the exhibition is a virtual walk through the entrance gate of the 1900 Paris World's Fair. Thanks to virtual reality technology and the work of French programmer Laurent Antoine (LeMog), visitors can virtually walk through the "Porte Monumentale". The gate, a nearly 30-metre-high steel construction decorated with large ceramic reliefs, was built by the renowned architect René Binet especially for the World's Fair in 1900 and then demolished again. The virtual reconstruction is completed by real ceramic plates of the "monumental entrance gate", exhibits from the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.

As a representative of modern architecture, a part of the façade from the Museum Brandhorst in Munich can be seen in the exhibition. The museum, which opened in 2009, is located in the Kunstareal in Munich. The façade is clad with 36,000 colourfully glazed ceramic rods, which give the building an unmistakable external appearance.

Other exhibits show important architectural examples from history. Some of the buildings on display are still standing, such as the Chilehaus in Hamburg, one of the most important buildings of brick architecture in Germany. Others show the irretrievable past, such as parts of the façade of the Ritter department stores', which stood in Halle an der Saale and was badly damaged when it was demolished after the Second World War.

The highlight in the area of interior design is a mural from the now demolished Palace of the Republic in Berlin. The mural, which is being presented in an exhibition for the first time, was saved by the artist Fred Rubin. Rubin has made the mural made of Meissen porcelain tiles, which was originally installed in the so-called Mokkabar, transportable and movable. This creates unique, unseen perspectives on the almost 50-year-old work for exhibition visitors.

Marvel and experience: Learning through participation
Spread across the 600 m² of exhibition space are nine hands-on stations that invite visitors to get creative themselves. "The integration of these hands-on stations is a first at Porzellanikon," explains museum director Anna Dziwetzki. "For the first time, visitors can get active themselves directly in the exhibition, for example painting tiles or assembling houses or wall coverings from bricks according to their own ideas." Visitors can actively follow the production of profiled bricks with a press that can be operated by exhibition guests as well as the making of bricks and floor tiles. "With the hands-on stations, we are of course addressing children and young people," explains Christoph Uhlig, head of education and outreach at Porzellanikon Selb. "But the stations are also there for our adult guests; learning through play knows no age limit."

Symposium for trade visitors
On 1 and 2 July 2022, as part of the special exhibition "More than Bricks! Tradition and Future of Architectural Ceramics". This is aimed at a specialist audience, including architects, scientists and building experts. Several lectures on the topic will be given by experts, followed by workshops inviting detailed discussions. This also closes the circle to the European project "Ceramics and its Dimensions", in which the idea for the special exhibition originated a few years ago. Detailed information on the lectures and registration deadlines will be announced by Porzellanikon in good time.

Video city guide: Discover architectural ceramics in Selb
In view of the Weeks of White Gold, which take place in Selb every year from July and attract many tourists, the Porzellanikon team has produced a video city guide for the city of Selb. At eleven locations spread throughout the porcelain city, exhibition curator Thomas Miltschus vividly explains the theme of architectural ceramics in our everyday surroundings. Of course, the porcelain fountain and the Porzellangässchen are included - "but we also provide interesting background information on other buildings that perhaps even one or two people in Selb were not yet aware of," says Miltschus.

Surprises
In the course of the exhibition, the exhibition team is planning more little surprises for the visitors. Above all, the theme of "clamping bricks" will be supplemented even further. "We don't want to reveal too much here yet," says Anna Dziwetzki, "otherwise it wouldn't be a surprise." A visit to the exhibition should not only be worthwhile once.

Opening hours
Porzellanikon Selb is open from Tuesday to Sunday and on public holidays from 10:00 to 17:00. Admission to Porzellanikon Selb costs €5.00 (€4.00 reduced) or €3.00 (€2.00 reduced) in Hohenberg. A combined ticket for visitors to both locations is also available (6.50 € and 5.00 € reduced). For more information on the special exhibition and the currently valid Corona regulations, our guests can visit www.porzellanikon.org.

Enquiries about "More than Bricks!" send directly to:

Thomas Miltschus M.A.
Curator Porzellanikon - State Museum of Porcelain
Fon +49 9287 91800-213
Mail: thomas.miltschus(at)porzellanikon.org