After a construction time of almost six years the Albertinum in Dresden has been reopened. The building, which contains the New Masters Picture Gallery and the Sculpture Collection, had to be repaired and rebuild after the catastrophic flood of 2002.

Volker Staab, a Berlin architect, achieved the transformation of the flood trauma, which swashed into the depots of the Albertinum, into an architectural solution. He spanned the former inner court with a 76 m long steel construction and put there the huge depots – hence from the basement into a height of seventeen meters. The whole contorted house gained with this procedure a new centre and clarity.

In addition to these building measurements the concept was changed. With the move-out of the Green Vault and the Coin Collection to the Royal Palace the Albertinum now solely shows art from the Romantic up to the presence. The new exhibition rooms are shared by the New Masters Picture Gallery and the Sculpture Collection with paintings from Caspar David Friedrich to Gerhard Richter as well as sculptures from Baroque to the 21st century.

The Albertinum opens daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Entrance fee 8 Euros, with discount 6 Euros. Free entrance for children under 16.
(K. Michael)

All around the world the porcelain with the crossed swords is known, manufactured for 300 years in Meißen. With two exhibitions Saxony celebrates the founding of the Meißen Porcelain Manufacture 300 years ago. On the Albrechtsburg in Meißen one can see the show “The Philosopher’s Stone” displayed on 1600 sqm exhibition space. The historic building served as the home of the porcelain manufacture from 1710 to 1863 with up to 800 employees.

Furthermore in the Japanese Palais in Dresden opened the exhibition “Triumph of the Blue Swords”. It unites about 800 precious porcelains, amongst them vases, coffee services, chocolate cups and tobacco tins. The exhibits provide the visitors an overview of the time between Baroque and Biedermeier. Next to the inventories of the Dresden State of Art Collections there are also national and foreign items on loan.

On 23rd January 1710 Augustus the Strong proclaimed in a decree the founding of the porcelain manufacture. For a long time porcelain had to be imported expensively from China. The alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger (1682-1719) succeeded in producing the European Porcelain – the “White Gold”.
(K. Michael)

Thanks to their taste of fashion, collecting passion and aspiration after princely presentation of power the artistic prince electors of Saxony created from the 16th to 19th century an oriental treasure room. The so called “Turkish Chamber” presents on 750 m² about 600 objects such as costumes, showy weapons and exquisite oriental equestrian accoutrements, precious materials and Ottoman tents.

All exhibits are connected to fascinating stories which you could come to know after a tour with DresdenWalks. This new permanent exhibition situated in the Royal Palace utilizes the latest exhibition techniques and creates a special atmosphere, which turns your visit into an unique experience.
(K. Michael)

Barely one artist has been hailed as Tizian for his portraits. The Venetian Renaissance painter (around 1488 – 1576) was in demand all over Europe: emperor, princes, aristocrats, and rich clients acted as a model for him. The “Lady in White” is one of the most graceful but also one of the most mysterious paintings. This studio exhibition is devoted to the restoration of Tizian’s “Lady in White” and will explain difficult working steps of the conservator as well as painting techniques of the artist.

In addition to this special exhibition there is now an extensive Cranach presentation. Lucas Cranach was one of the most important German painter und graphic artist of the Renaissance. Dresden owns the biggest body of his paintings worldwide, which can be enjoyed now for several months. This exhibition shows all the essential works of Cranach the Elder and the Younger.

The collection will be taken over by a Vermeer exhibition in September.
(K. Michael)

www.skd-dresden.de

The biggest 360 degrees panorama of the Elbe city takes you inside the Asisi Panometer in Dresden on a visual journey to the legendary Augustan era.
On monumental 105 meters length and 27 meters height and the scale 1:1 – “1756 Dresden” transfers you to the once Baroque residence on a sunny August afternoon of the year 1756, the eve of the Seven Year War.

See, wonder and grasp inside the Asisi Panometer in Dresden: Here you become a part of Baroque Dresden yourself. From a 12 meters high platform opens a view over the roofs and squares of the royal residence, over magnificent palaces and churches, the vast gardens and splendid town houses along the river Elbe up to the fortress Königstein on the horizon.
(K. Michael)

Hours of opening: Tue – Fri: 9am – 7pm, Sat, Sun & bank holidays: 10am – 8pm,
Mon: closed
www.asisi.de

On Sunday, Februar 21st 2010, DresdenWalks invited Germans for a special (free) tour offered because of the international tourist guide day. It’s main topic was “It reeks of work…”.

We greeted approximately 60 persons at 11 o’clock to our tour. Saskia, Astrid, Tom, Anke and Jana were the “realay team”. Heidi and Sylvia took care of our individual guest who joined the “ordinary” tours and Katharina stayed home with her “juniors”.

For this special topic “It reeks of work…” our guides thought of new and forgotten objects and topics. So we talked about mechanics of the Semper Opera House, the former tanners quarter and the “queck” water fountain, the Procession of Princes with its various craftsmen, Saxon inventions in food and beverages and about the Yenidze and its cigarettes. Guests listened to each guide and stayed with us until the end even though it started snowing.

It was a wonderful tour for all of us. We enjoyed it a lot and look forward to the next tourist guide day in 2011 and until then – to many guests for our daily tours in town.
(J. Malschewski)

This presentation, designed by the artist and his wife, contains in particular works, which were created within a strong controversy with Dresden and its history. The strength of choice is the thematic emphasis – not seen like this before and different from other survey exhibitions.

In central position in the Semper Gallery, in the Gobelin Hall, two big groups of works will be shown from the oeuvre of Georg Baselitz from 18th January to 27th February 2010.

The main work about the German history absorbs a defining event, not only in the memory of the artist: the destruction of Dresden and the in a fire apotheosis flashing end of the Second World War.

Attached to this exhibition core are presented in the adjacent rooms paintings and drawings such as “Evening Meal in Dresden” and “The Bridge Ghost’s Supper”. They show as well the reference of Baselitz to the Christian picture tradition as his artistic role models, among others Edvard Munch and the artists of the BRÜCKE.
(K. Michael)

Since 1990 the International Tourist Guide Day (ITGD) is carried out worldwide by numerous tourist guide organisations on 21st February.
In Germany the International Tourist Guide Day invites the public to get to know the work of well-trained tourist guides, who are organised in the Federal Association of Tourist Guides Germany.

With great dedication and ingenuity also dresdenwalks deploys the slogan of the ITGD 2010 “It reeks of work….” and developed for the numerous expected guests a new and interesting tour. Thus we will offer a relay, whereby every member of dresdenwalks serves one station.

Starting point of this special tour is the Schlossplatz square next to the large flight of stairs at 11 o’clock on 21st February 2010. Altogether the tour will take about 2 hours and each station about 15 minutes.
This special tour is only in German and free of charge.

Our daily walking tour in the historic city centre of Dresden takes place according to plan at the usual terms.
(K. Michael)

On January 15th, the “most beautiful night of the year” is being staged for the fifth time. Once again more than 2000 guests inside the opera and thousands of visitors on Theatre Square can look forward to a splendid program of classical entertainment: not just inside the Operahouse but also outside on Theatre Square. There the “SemperOpenairball” will be opend by a spectacular Light- and Fireworksshow.

This year´s motto “Great Couples” will not only feature opera-couples like Tristan and Isolde but it streches far beyond: elements that belong together come together like Semperopera and Dresden, East and West, Germany and Europe.
You will be surprised!
(A. Brühl)