Decorative Arts Trust Prize to Fund Digital Porcelain Rooms Project
Porcelain study of Charles III of Spain, 1760–65, painted soft-paste porcelain
(Aranjuez: Patrimonio Nacional de España)
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From the press release:
The Decorative Arts Trust is thrilled to announce that the 2025 Prize for Excellence and Innovation will be awarded to The Digital Porcelain Rooms Project, a collaboration between the Custard Institute for Spanish Art and Culture at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows Museum and the Edith O’Donnell Institute of Art History at the University of Texas at Dallas.
The goal of the porcelain rooms project is to reanimate and reinterpret two of the most important interiors in the canon of 18th-century decorative arts: the Salottino di Porcellana in Naples, Italy, and the Gabinete de Porcelana in Aranjuez, Spain. The project embraces an expansive definition of decorative arts, examining not only the design and materiality of porcelain interiors but also the labor, technologies, and global flows that made them possible.
Porcelain room of Maria Amalia of Saxony, 1757–59, painted porcelain and stucco (Naples: Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte; photo by Luciano Romano).
Maria Amalia of Saxony’s 1757–59 Salottino di Porcellana was originally installed in the Royal Palace at Portici in Naples and is now housed at the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte. Designed in the so-called Chinese taste using local craftsmen, the Salottino was left unfinished when Maria Amalia departed for Spain in 1759 but was later completed with a Roman mosaic floor, likely sourced from nearby Herculaneum. Charles III’s Gabinete de Porcelana was developed 1760–65 at the Palacio Real de Aranjuez near Toledo, Spain, reflecting his assertion of political authority through elaborate interior design.
The Digital Porcelain Rooms Project is a transnational, interdisciplinary effort that brings together curators, art historians, archaeologists, conservators, technologists, and cultural heritage leaders from leading museums, research institutes, and universities across Europe and the United States. The project involves the participation of the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte, Centro MUSA Musei della Reggia di Portici, the Center for the Art and Architectural History of Port Cities at La Capraia, and the Palacio Real de Madrid.
The Decorative Arts Trust Prize for Excellence and Innovation, founded in 2020, funds outstanding projects that advance the public’s appreciation of decorative art, fine art, architecture, or landscape. The Prize is awarded to a nonprofit organization in the United States for a scholarly endeavor, such as museum exhibitions, conservation and preservation projects, and online databases. Past recipients include Drayton Hall; the Concord Museum, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; the Black Craftspeople Digital Archive; and Craft in America. Nominations are accepted through June 30, annually. For more information about the Prize for Excellence and Innovation, visit decorativeartstrust.org/prize.
Forbidden City’s Qianlong Garden Reopens after Conservation
When the Qianlong Emperor abdicated in 1796, he had a retirement complex waiting for him in a 1.6-hectare space within the Forbidden City. But he never took up residence in the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, and the site has remained largely untouched ever since. It contains some of the most extraordinary examples of Chinese interior design in existence today. Pictured here, Juanqinzhai, or Studio of Exhaustion from Diligent Service, is noted for the trompe-l’oeil silk paintings on the ceiling and walls of its private theater. Its reception room also contains unusually fine bamboo thread marquetry and inner bamboo skin carvings, as well as jade inlays and sophisticated textile decorations.
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From the WMF press release (30 September 2025) . . .
World Monuments Fund (WMF) and the Palace Museum today announced the official public opening of the Qianlong Garden, a masterwork of 18th-century Chinese imperial design located in the northeast corner of Beijing’s Forbidden City. After a two-decade-long conservation effort, the garden has reopened. A new on-site exhibition will offer a comprehensive understanding of the Qianlong Garden’s interiors, design, and craftsmanship. The inauguration of the garden will be accompanied by the publication of the book Tranquil Longevity, Predestined Serenity: The Origins, Interpretation and Conservation of the Qianlong Garden, providing an in-depth look at the history of the Qianlong Garden and the restoration of the site.
Restored exterior of Qianlong Garden.
Constructed by the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–1796) as a planned retreat for his later years, the 1.6-hectare site includes 27 buildings across four courtyards, with ornate interiors that preserve original furniture, decorative finishes, and rare materials largely untouched since the 18th century. Following an extensive 25-year conservation initiative led by World Monuments Fund (WMF) in partnership with the Palace Museum, the site now features restored interiors and exteriors showcasing some of the most refined and culturally significant artistry of the Qing Dynasty. This collaboration brought together international experts and Chinese artisans to address the site’s preservation challenges, revive endangered craft techniques, and uphold the garden’s extraordinary architectural integrity.
“This is a landmark moment for heritage conservation in China,” said Hunghsi Chao, Senior Regional Director for East Asia at World Monuments Fund. “Qianlong Garden represents an unparalleled survival of imperial interior design, and its preservation requires both technical precision and deep cultural understanding. Through our work with the Palace Museum, we have not only safeguarded a historic treasure but have helped reinvigorate traditional craftsmanship and inspired new generations of conservation professionals.”
As a cornerstone of the conservation effort, WMF launched the CRAFT Educational Program (Conservation Resources for Architectural Interiors, Furniture, and Training) in 2011 to provide formal training in architectural conservation. In partnership with Tsinghua University and the Palace Museum, the program became a master’s-level conservation initiative in China to align with international standards, blending scientific methodology with traditional Chinese techniques.
“World Monuments Fund’s partnership with the Palace Museum has shown how international collaboration and local expertise can come together to achieve something truly exceptional,” said Bénédicte de Montlaur, President and CEO of World Monuments Fund. “Qianlong Garden is a living document of Qing-era craftsmanship and global influence—its preservation stands as a model for how education, science, and culture can shape the future of heritage.”
Model of the Qianlong Garden from the exhibition “Heavenly Craftsmanship: The History and Preservation of the Ningshou Palace Garden.”
A pilot project for the broader site was launched in 2002 with the restoration of Juanqinzhai (Studio of Exhaustion from Diligent Service), a pavilion known for its rare trompe l’oeil silk murals, bamboo marquetry, and theatrical stage. Conservation of Juanqinzhai revived long-lost techniques and informed all subsequent work throughout the garden. Completed interventions include the Fuwangge (Belvedere of Viewing Achievements), Zhuxiangguan (Lodge of Bamboo Fragrance), and Yucuixuan (Bower of Purest Jade), while work continues across the remaining courtyards.
“Joint projects involving the Palace Museum in China and World Monuments Fund based in the United States, beginning in 2000 and continuing to the present, have demonstrated that, in the context of globalization, different civilizations can achieve mutual understanding and respect through dialogue, communication, and cooperation, and thus jointly promote the prosperity and development of human civilization,” said Director Wang Xudong of the Palace Museum.
The inauguration ceremony welcomed representatives from the Palace Museum and World Monuments Fund, cultural leaders, and conservation experts to celebrate the public opening of the Qianlong Garden as part of the Palace Museum’s centennial. Building on the success of this project, the Palace Museum and World Monuments Fund will continue to collaborate on preservation and training initiatives throughout the Forbidden City.
Alongside the opening, the Palace Museum published Tranquil Longevity, Predestined Serenity: The Origins, Interpretation, and Conservation of the Qianlong Garden, providing an in-depth look at the storied history of Qianlong Garden. The book also details the full story of the spirit of cooperation between Chinese and American heritage professionals who faced daunting obstacles to restore the site. Readers can explore the garden and its preservation through detailed illustrations, new photography, rarely published drawings, and historic photographs of the Qianlong Garden taken during the last days of the Qing Dynasty.
The exhibition Heavenly Craftsmanship: The History and Preservation of the Ningshou Palace Garden will be on display in the garden’s Suichu Hall and the east and west side halls, presenting the historical and cultural value of the Ningshou Palace Garden and the achievements of its preservation and restoration.
Exhibition | Count Cozio and the Myth of Stradivari
Installation of the exhibition Il conte Cozio e il mito di Stradivari: Capolavori in Piemonte tra ‘700 e ‘800 at Palazzo Madama in Torino (2025).
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Now on view at Palazzo Madama:
Count Cozio and the Myth of Stradivari
Masterpieces in Piedmont between the 18th and 19th Centuries
Palazzo Madama, Torino, 19 September — 23 November 2025
Curated by Giovanni Accornero and Duane Rosengard
On the occasion of the 270th anniversary of the birth of Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, this exhibition celebrates and sheds light on the legacy of this remarkable collector, born in Casale Monferrato on 14 March 1755. Unlike other collectors of his time, Cozio did not merely acquire valuable stringed instruments. By studying their provenance and construction, he became a true pioneer of what we now call the modern organological approach.
Through his collaboration with the violin maker Giovanni Battista Guadagnini, Cozio succeeded in purchasing from Paolo Stradivari twelve of his father Antonio’s violins—including the legendary ‘Messiah’, built in Cremona in 1716 and considered the most famous Stradivari violin in the world. Cozio also acquired the entire contents of Stradivari’s workshop: moulds, tools, cardboard patterns, and drawings. This invaluable heritage—a portion of which is presented in the exhibition—today stands as the historical memory of the Cremonese violin-making tradition.
The exhibition retraces Cozio’s life as a collector through seven sections, displaying 20 stringed instruments of exceptional historical importance, twelve of which once belonged to him. Many of these instruments are being shown to the public for the very first time. Among them is the 1668 violin by Nicolò Amati, inherited from Cozio’s father, which has never before been exhibited. The journey is enriched by rare plucked string instruments, representing a significant part of the production of violin makers active in Turin during the 18th and early 19th centuries.
Archival documents from Cozio’s Carteggio accompany the display, offering new insights into both the Count himself and the musical world in which his passion for string instruments flourished. A special section is dedicated to the Teatro Regio of Turin, featuring the unprecedented display of violins once owned by Piedmontese virtuosos Gaetano Pugnani (Giuseppe Guarneri ‘del Gesù’, 1736) and Giovanni Battista Viotti (Antonio Stradivari, 1718), alongside two rare portraits of the musicians. Along the exhibition path, visitors will encounter the interactive 3D installation “The Shape of Sound,” which allows them to explore a faithful 3D replica of the ‘Salabue-Berta’ violin. The ‘Salabue-Berta’ violin was built in Turin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini in 1774 and is also presented in the exhibition. This section is further enhanced by the presence of a bench copy crafted by Luiz Amorim, a tangible bridge between historical mastery and contemporary craftsmanship.
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The Strad adds this bit of information about one of the portraits of Battista Viotti: “the exhibition includes the famous portrait of Viotti by the French portraitist Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, marking its first public display. The painting recently resurfaced on the antiques market, having previously been considered lost in the early 20th century.”
Call for Papers | Mozart and His Time
From the conference website:
Mozart and His Time
Palácio Nacional da Ajuda, Lisbon, 22–24 January 2026
Organized by Aline Gallasch-Hall de Beuvink and Helena Gonçalves Pinto
Proposals due by 15 November 2025
The conference Mozart and His Time is organised by the Department of History, Art, and Humanities of the Universidade Autonoma of Lisbon, in partnership with the Ajuda National Palace (Portuguese Republic – Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, Museums and Monuments of Portugal) and Parques de Sintra – Monte da Lua. It is supported by CIDEHUS – University of Évora (CIDEHUS.UAL Centre).
The year 2026 commences with the commemoration of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s 270th anniversary (1756–1791) on January 27th. Universally esteemed as a prodigious genius and one of history’s most exceptional composers, Mozart lived during an era of significant upheaval. He was arguably the first composer to endeavor to be self-employed (Norbert Elias), a concept that was ahead of its time. This conference seeks to illuminate Mozart’s genius, while also fostering a greater comprehension of the era in which he lived: a period of profound political and social transformation that bridged the modern and contemporary eras.
Our national keynote speakers will be Rui Vieira Nery and Rosana Marreco Brescia. The international keynote speaker will be Mozart expert Simon Keefe, from the University of Sheffield.
We invite submissions that explore, but are not limited to, the following themes:
• The oeuvre and biography of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• The influence of Mozart on his contemporaries
• Political, social, and cultural shifts in the latter half of the 18th century
• The reverberations of colonial revolutions in continental Europe
• Artistic movements in Central Europe during Mozart’s era (literature, painting, sculpture, architecture)
• The evolving role of women in opera and performance
• Libretti and musical performances reflecting the social transitions of the period
• The striving of artists to establish social standing
• Pivotal junctures that catalyzed social, political, philosophical, cultural, and artistic transformations (e.g., the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake, the French Revolution)
The conference languages will be Portuguese and English. Proposals should be sent as a Word or PDF document containing a title, a short abstract (maximum 250 words), and the author’s name and affiliation to the organisers at abeuvink@autonoma.pt by the 15th of November 2025.
Scientific Committee
Miguel Figueira de Faria
Rui Vieira Nery
Frédéric Vidal
Aline Gallasch-Hall de Beuvink
Roberta Stumpf
Helena Gonçalves Pinto
Rosana Marreco Brescia
Miguel Jalôto
Symposium | The French Influence in Newport
From Newport Mansions:
The French Influence in Newport
Rosecliff and Marble House, Newport, Rhode Island, 6–7 November 2025
French art, architecture, design and cuisine permeated the lifestyles of the Gilded Age elite as they looked to the French aristocracy for inspiration. Richard Morris Hunt, the first American architect trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, modeled the architecture of Alva Vanderbilt’s Marble House after the Petit Trianon at Versailles. Horace Trumbauer’s inspiration for The Elms came from the 18th-century Château d’Asnières, while Stanford White’s design for Rosecliff incorporated elements of another Versailles palace, the Grand Trianon. Furniture maker and interior designer Jules Allard et Fils furnished Newport’s summer ‘cottages’ with treasures inspired by and imported from France, and French chefs created magnificent culinary confections. Learn about all of this and more during the symposium’s morning lectures and guided afternoon tours (Thursday at Rosecliff and Friday at Marble House). Registration includes special access to the exhibition Richard Morris Hunt: In a New Light at Rosecliff.
Scholarships are available to assist undergraduate and graduate students interested in attending the symposium.
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Speakers
• Keynote Speaker: Mathieu Deldicque, Chief Curator and Museum Director of Château de Chantilly
• Margot Bernstein, Private Collection Curator
• Becky Libourel Diamond, Food Culture Historian
• Leslie Jones, Director of Museum Affairs and Chief Curator, the Preservation Society
• Laura Bergemann, former Preservation Society Conservation Research Fellow and PhD candidate at Vanderbilt University
• Théo Lourenço, Preservation Society Curatorial Research Fellow
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Speakers
• Justine De Young, Associate Professor and Chair of the History of Art Department, Fashion Institute of Technology (SUNY) in New York City
• Natalie Larson, Interior Textile Historian, Historic Textile Reproductions LLC
• Nadia Albertini, French Heritage Society Scholar, Franco-Mexican embroidery and textile designer
• Bob Shaw, HBO’s The Gilded Age Production Designer
Conversations | Regarding History: American Art in Perspective
From The Met:
Regarding History: American Art in Perspective
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1 November 2025
Join curators, academics, and artists to mark the end of the American Wing’s 100th anniversary with dynamic conversations and presentations that explore multilayered interpretations of American art and history. Discover how diverse institutions and individuals are bringing history to life for audiences through a variety of engaging approaches that activate digital technologies, showcase innovations in visual and material object-based displays, and center the power of place and the potential for contemporary artistic interventions. Presentations will be recorded and posted soon after the event on The Met’s YouTube channel.
Registration for in-person attendance is available here»
s c h e d u l e
11.00 Introduction — Sylvia Yount (Lawrence A. Fleischman Curator in Charge of the American Wing, The Met)
11.15 Keynote Conversation
• Edward Ayers (Tucker-Boatwright Professor of the Humanities and President Emeritus, University of Richmond)
• Christy Coleman (Executive Director, Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation)
12.15 Break
1.30 Curatorial Roundtable
Moderated by Sylvia Yount
• Layla Bermeo (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
• Kathleen Foster (Philadelphia Museum of Art)
• Sarah Kelly Oehler (Art Institute of Chicago)
2.30 Artist Presentation — Titus Kaphar
3.00 Closing Remarks
Call for Papers | ASECS 2026 Session: Lighting the Enlightenment
A few sessions for next spring’s ASECS conference are still finalizing participants and hoping for submissions, including this one on “Lighting the Enlightenment.” Do get in touch with chairs right away if you have an idea (there may be a little wiggle room even with the late deadline).
Session | Lighting the Enlightenment:
Artificial Light and the Transformation of Cultural Practices
ASECS Annual Conference, Philadelphia, 9–11 April 2026
Proposals due by 3 October 2025
Chairs: Sophie Raux, Université Lumière Lyon 2, LARHRA, sophie.raux@9online.fr; and Marie Thebaud-Sorger, CNRS, Centre Alexandre-Koyré Paris, marie.thebaud-sorger@cnrs.fr
The renewal of theories of light in the eighteenth century, alongside the development of practices and uses related to the economy of lighting—such as lamps—contributed to shaping a metaphorical understanding of luminous phenomena within the broader discourse of rationalization that characterized the aptly named Age of Enlightenment. Artificial light came to be seen as a manifestation of humanity’s ability to overcome natural constraints, enabling the development of a wide range of practices—nocturnal sociability, theater, art academies, night work, domestic interiors—aligned with the transformation of material environments aimed at improving comfort, safety, and hygiene.
In recent years, interdisciplinary approaches have opened new avenues for research that move beyond literary or visual representations, emphasizing the role of material culture, technology, and sensory experience in shaping historical analysis. This panel invites proposals that explore how artificial lighting influenced, enabled, or transformed social, artistic, and literary practices. To what extent did innovations in lighting modify, inspire, or make possible such practices? What relationships emerged between technical innovation and artistic or literary creativity? How did artificial light affect the visual cultures of the Enlightenment? What were its implications for the history of vision and representation? We welcome contributions from a wide range of perspectives, including literary studies, theater studies, art history, the history of technology, the history of knowledge, and sensory studies. Special attention will be given to papers that reflect on methodological questions—for instance, the role of digital simulation or reenactment in reconstructing past sensory experiences. All submissions must be submitted through the Annual Meeting and Membership Portal.
New Book | Architecture and Artifice
Distributed by Yale UP:
Christine Casey, Architecture and Artifice: The Crafted Surface in Eighteenth-Century Building Practice (London: Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, 2025), 208 pages, ISBN: 978-1913107482, £45 / $60.
Revealing the materials and craftsmanship that shaped the look of eighteenth-century architecture in Britain and Ireland
This book uncovers the overlooked material practices that were crucial to architectural production in the eighteenth century. Centred on the architecture of England and Ireland, it examines the facing materials that define the distinctive character of cities and regions. Focusing on the final stages of construction—the external façade and interior finishes in stone, plaster, and wood—Architecture and Artifice combines archival research with insights from architectural conservation to reveal the hidden techniques behind these structures. It explores the lives of craftsmen, uncovering the unwritten standards that guided their work and argues for the agency of materials and craft in shaping the meanings of eighteenth-century buildings. Featuring a cast of lesser-known craftsmen alongside new perspectives on iconic structures such as Chatsworth, the Cambridge Senate House, and Dublin’s Parliament House, the book introduces a wealth of previously unpublished archival material uncovering the intricate processes and people behind the era’s most enduring buildings.
Christine Casey is a professor of architectural history and fellow at Trinity College Dublin. She is a member of the Royal Irish Academy and an honorary member of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland.
Conference | Servants, Labourers, and the Manorial World
Johan Cornelius Krieger, Ledreborg Castle, Denmark (about 30 miles west of Copenhagen). Most of the house was constructed in the 1740s.
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From ENCOUNTER:
Servants, Labourers, and the Manorial World: Alternative Perspectives
9th ENCOUNTER Conference
Ledreborg Castle, Denmark, 9–11 October 2025
The European Network for Country House and Estate Research (ENCOUNTER) is pleased to host its ninth conference, organized in collaboration with The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies and Gammel Estrup, The Danish Manor Museum.
The manor or country house is often viewed exclusively as a stage for the economic and political elite of the past, a setting for splendour, luxury, and self-presentation. However, the world of the manor also included a well-defined hierarchy consisting of landowning families, tenant farmers, servants, craftsmen and labourers, all negotiating the dynamics of power. Ideally, the manor operated as a paternalistic institution built on mutual obligations: masters provided care and protection and subordinates offered work, loyalty and obedience. This relationship was both a practical arrangement and an ideological framework, a power dynamic and a manifestation of social inequality.
These historical structures could however be a source of both resistance and conflict as well as support and benevolence. On a larger scale, country houses became both targets and symbols during major confrontations, from peasant revolts to revolutions and civil wars. On a smaller scale, historical court records reveal conflicts involving servants and owners or the owners’ representatives. Conversely, the manor provided the social framework for many people’s lives, offering employment, housing, and protection. Country house owners offered patronage and sought to cultivate the religious and moral development of their staff and communities. Loyal service was rewarded with promotions and comfortable living conditions. Manors funded churches, schools, alms-houses, and gave donations. However, the nineteenth century brought dramatic social changes, as industrialisation drew labor and wealth into the urban centres. To what extent were these changes driven by further political developments and societal reforms? Was social change in a rural context a one-way phenomenon dictated by landowners?
This ENCOUNTER conference will explore these dynamics, primarily focusing on a bottom-up perspective, highlighting the master-servant relationship in its full paternalistic scope, and addressing household, villages, rural communities, etc. This includes shedding light on the conditions and material realities for servants and workers, as well as the organisational structures. And to explore conflicts/resistance and limits within the relationship, as well as changes in the nature and conditions of the relationship over time.
ENCOUNTER was founded in Denmark in 2015 and has since provided a framework for interaction between scholars and cultural institutions in Europe sharing a professional interest in the research and interpretation of manor and country house history. The conference thus also marks the network’s 10th anniversary.
Abstracts for each paper are available here»
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8.40 Bus departure from Scandic Roskilde
8.55 Bus departure from Roskilde Station
9.15 Arrival Ledreborg Estate
10.00 Welcome — Kasper Steenfeldt Tipsmark (Gammel Estrup The Danish Manor & Estate Museum) and Signe Boeskov (The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies)
10.15 Keynote
• Aristocratic Servants in 17th-Century Sweden: Gender, Recruitment, and Career — Svante Norrhem (Lund University)
10.55 Session 1 | Servants
Chair: Kasper Steenfeldt Tipsmark
• Servants’ Property and Material Culture on Swedish Manors, 1770–1870 — Göran Ulväng (Uppsala University)
• The Organisation of the Household: The Role of High-Ranking Servants at 19th-Century Danish Manors — Signe Boeskov and Søren Broberg Knudsen (The Danish Research Centre for Manorial Studies)
• Behind the Scenes of the Manor — Aina Aske (Vestfoldmuseene IKS) and Lars Jacob Hvinden-Haug (Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, NIKU)
• Hidden Doors and Secret Passages: Telling the Story of Servants in Eidsvoll House — Solveig Therese Dahl (Eidsvoll 1814, The Norsk Folkemuseum foundation)
13.00 Lunch
14.10 Guided tour Ledreborg
15.25 Session 2 | Labour and Estate Community
Chair: Paul Zalewski (European University of Viadrina)
• The Transition from Serfdom to the Industrial Worker in the Vodka Distillery of the Estonian Manor during the 19th Century — Mirje Tammaru (Estonian Academy of Arts)
• Arm Wrestling: Agency and Negotiations between Tenant Farmers and the Big House: An Alternative Perspective from Four 18th-Century Estates in the Netherlands — Gerrit van Oosterom, (independent researcher)
• Labourers on the Estate—Esbogård, 1770–1920 — Tryggve Gestrin (Espoo City Museum)
• Work, Family, Security: The Relationships and Life Strategies within the Håkansböle Manor Community — Eeva Kotioja (Vantaa City Museum)
17.30 Discussion and break
18.45 Dinner at Restaurant Herthadalen
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8.10 Bus departure from Scandic Roskilde
8.25 Bus departure from Roskilde Station
8.45 Arrival Ledreborg Estate
9.30 Early Career Keynote
• Early Modern Estates as Communities of ‘Care’: Medical Practice across the Social Hierarchy in Rural England, 1650–1750 — Emma Marshall (University of Birmingham and University of York)
10.10 Session 3 | Care and Crisis
Chair: Hanneke Ronnes (University of Groningen)
• A Manorial World in Miniature? The Hospital of Laurvig County in the 18th Century — Arne Bugge Amundsen (University of Oslo)
• The State, the Subjects, and the Lord: Conflicts at Ängsö Manor, 1690–1710 — Joakim Scherp (Stockholm University and The Riksdag Library)
• Caring Beyond the Grave? The Estate of Denis Roest van Alkemade (1720–1791) — Thijs Boers (Amsterdam Museum and University of Amsterdam)
12.15 Lunch
13.35 Bus departure for Gisselfeld
14.30 Guided tour of Gisselfeld
16.45 Departure for Vallø
17.20 Guided tour of Vallø
19.00 Dinner at Vallø Slotskro
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8.10 Bus departure from Scandic Roskilde
8.25 Bus departure from Roskilde Station
9.30 Guided tour of Gjorslev
11.15 Departure for Gavnø
12.35 Lunch at Café Tulipanen / Guided tour of Gavnø
14.45 Bus departure
16.15 Arrival Scandic Roskilde
16.30 Arrival Roskilde Banegård
Symposium | Meissen Symposium: Höroldt’s Legacy
From the Meissen Porcelain Museum:
1st Meissen Symposium: Höroldt’s Legacy
Meissen Porzellan-Stiftung, Meißen, 7–9 November 2025
The Meissen Porcelain Foundation is hosting the Meissen Symposium, part of what is envisioned as a regular series of symposia aimed at facilitating exchanges on ceramic history at the birthplace of European porcelain. The subject of this year’s symposium is Höroldt’s Legacy, with an emphasis on ceramic pigments, their historical and contemporary development, and their use within the Meissen Manufactory and beyond. The occasion for this year’s symposium is the 250th anniversary of the deaths in 1775 of Meissen’s two towering figures, Johann Gregorius Höroldt (1696–1775) and Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775).
Höroldt’s arrival in Meissen in 1720 signaled a breakthrough in porcelain painting. Höroldt was an innovative artist with a natural and intuitive understanding of pigment chemistry without any formal training. He developed the proper technology for the enameling of porcelain using metal-oxide-based pigments at high temperatures. Today, his initial set of 16 enamel colors has grown to around 10,000.
Augustus the Strong’s initial objective was the making of blue-and-white porcelain, similar to that of the Chinese. With Höroldt’s arrival the success story of overglaze polychrome painting began. Inspired initially by East Asian decors it was expanded to include European flower painting, the classic harbor scenes, hunting scenes, and scenes after Watteau, Ridinger and others. In the 19th century it was expanded to royal blue ground, to include platinum, pâte-sur-pâte, and Limoges painting. Experiments with tinted porcelain paste can be traced to the 18th century. Exploring the miscibility of colorants was intensely investigated as documented by the hundreds of surviving, meticulously documented and archived color samples in the Meissen Manufactory Museum. In-glaze painting, and the invention of soluble and high-temperature resistant colorants that could be used underglaze were significant additional technological developments. Advances in scientific analysis are expected to provide new insights.
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10.00 Morning Session
1 Frank Löchelt, Meissen — Color Laboratory / Farblabor der Manufaktur
2 Nicholas Zumbulyadis, USA — Influencing the Influencer: Thoughts about the Origins of Höroldt’s Technological Advances / Wer beeinflusste Höroldt: Gedanken zu den Ursprüngen von Höroldts technologischen Fortschritten
3 Ullrich Knüpfer — Insights into the Technological Basics of Polychrome Porcelain Decoration / Technologische Grundlagen der farbigen Porzellan-Dekoration
4 Annett Lorenz, Meissen — Porcelain Painter: Aspects of Figure Painting / Porzellanmaler: Aspekte der Figurenmalerei
5 Maureen Cassidy-Geiger, USA — Glazed Canvases: New Approaches to the Study of (Miniature) Painting on Meissen Porcelain / Neue Ansätze zur Erforschung der (Miniatur-)Malerei auf Meissener Porzellan
6 Holger Schill, Meissen — Head of Bundling and Finishing: A Practical Report on Customer Requests, Color Palettes, and New Decors / Leiter Bund- und Endfertigung: Ein Praxisbericht über Kundenwünsche, Farbpalletten und neue Dekore
1.30 Lunch
3.00 Afternoon Session
7 Sebastian Bank, SKD — Frankenthal Colors: From Meissen to the Palatinate / Die Entwicklung der Frankenthaler Farben aus kunsthistorischer Sicht
8 Uwe Marschner, Meissen — About Pate-sure-pate Painting / Leiter Modellherstellung und Formenarchiv: Zur Pate-sure-pate Malerei
9 Lena Hensel, Meissen — Meissen Today / Leiterin Produktentwicklung: Meissen heute
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9.30 Welcome
10.00 Morning Session
1 Susanne Bochmann, Meissen — Porzellan-Stiftung Color Samples and Patterns in the Collections of the Meissen Porcelain Foundation / Farbproben und Farbmuster in der Sammlung der Meissen Porzellan-Stiftung
2 Jens Petzold, KI-Institut Meißen — The Influence of Firing on Ceramic Colors / Einfluss der Brandführung auf keramische Farben
3 Lena Kaapke, Künstlerin — Inquiring the Red: A Visually and Sensually Organized, Tactile Archive of Various Red Ceramic Surfaces / Befragungen an das Rot: ein visuell und sinnlich geordnetes, haptisches Archiv verschiedener keramisch roter Oberflächen
4 Zhong Zhenhua, Deputy Dean of the School of International Exchange and Education and the Deputy Director of the Ceramic Culture Exchange and Research Center at Jingdezhen College — Johann Gregorius Höroldt and Jingdezhen Porcelain: The Historical and Aesthetic Connections between Höroldt’s Chinoiserie and Jingdezhen’s Ceramic Heritage / Johann Gregorius Höroldt und Jingdezhen-Porzellan: Die historischen und ästhetischen Verbindungen zwischen Höroldts Chinoiserie und dem keramischen Erbe von Jingdezhen
5 Vanessa Sigalas, Wadsworth Atheneum, USA — Where Are All the White Figures? Later Decorated Meissen Porcelain / Wo sind all die weißen Figuren? Später dekoriertes Meissener Porzellan
6 Valérie Montens, Curator of European Ceramics and Glass Collections, Royal Museums of Art and History, Brussels; and Sofia Cruz Oulhaj, student in conservation and restoration of ceramic and glass, ENSAV La Cambre, Brussels — From Restoration to Attribution: Scientific and Stylistic Reassessment of a Meissen Huntress Figurine / Von der Restaurierung zur Zuschreibung: Wissenschaftliche und stilistische Neubewertung einer Meissener Jägerinnenfigur
1.00 Lunch
2.30 Afternoon Session
7 Bernd Ullrich — Initial Analytical Material Investigations on Historical Products from the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Using X-ray Fluorescence, Scanning Electron Microscopy, and Electron Beam Microprobe Technology in the 1980s at the TU Bergakademie Freiberg / Erste analytische Werkstoffuntersuchungen an historischen Erzeugnissen der Porzellanmanufaktur Meissen mittels Röntgenfloureszenz, Rasterelektronenmikroskopie und Elektronenstrahlmikrosondentechnik in den 1980er Jahren an der TU Bergakademie Freiberg
8 Philippe Colomban, Sorbonne University — How to Extract the Maximum Information on Enamels in a Non-invasive Way with Mobile Instrumentation (Raman + pXRF), Explaining which Results Can Be Reliable and What the Difficulties Are, with the Example of This France/Italy/Germany/China Comparison / Wie man mit mobilen Messgeräten (Raman + pXRF) auf nicht-invasive Weise möglichst viele Informationen über Glasur gewinnt, wobei anhand des Vergleichs zwischen Frankreich, Italien, Deutschland und China erläutert wird, welche Ergebnisse zuverlässig sind und wo die Schwierigkeiten liegen
9 Christian Lechelt, Fürstenberg — For Some Years Now, the Museum Schloss Fürstenberg and the Freundeskreis Fürstenberger Porzellan e. V. Have Collaborated with Cranfield University and Leiden University on a Project Aimed at Gaining New Insights into 18th-Century Fürstenberg Porcelain Production Using X-ray Fluorescence Analysis / Seit einigen Jahren verfolgen das Museum Schloss Fürstenberg und der Freundeskreis Fürstenberger Porzellan e. V. zusammen mit den Universitäten in Cranfield (UK) und Leiden (NL) ein Projekt, um mittels Roentgenfluoreszenzanalyse zu neuen Erkenntnissen über die Fürstenberger Porzellanproduktion des 18. Jahrhunderts zu gelangen
4.15 Panel Discussion / Podiumsdiskussion
Enfilade 
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