Baroque and roll: an extraordinary Austrian castle plays hosts to a show of young designers
![extraordinary Austrian castle with designers](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/4wZ3H3Nuo3zcFbyCjcECEM-415-80.jpg)
‘It’s the Tuscany of Austria,’ quipped someone on our three-hour journey from Vienna to Schloss Hollenegg for Design. This was difficult to picture at first – but it all became apparent once the car pulled up to the 12th century castle, complete with a courtyard blanketed in wisteria and set against a dazzling alpine backdrop. Located in the Austrian market town of Schwanberg, the castle was once the holiday home of the Liechtenstein family.
The spellbinding venue is the unlikely location for ‘Morphosis’, an exhibition of emerging design talent curated by local exhibition designer and curator Alice Stori Liechtenstein. ‘The [theme] is about paying attention to how change happens,’ explains Liechtenstein. ‘Design can be a tool to make change happen. We are in changing times, happening fast and it’s quite fragile.’
This is the second year Liechtenstein has overseen the programme at Schloss Hollenegg, with the intent to bring design to the rural area. It is also the second time she has opened up an unused room of the castle to the designers-in-residence – this year Lex Pott and Stephanie Hornig – who each spent a week creating works inspired by the eclectic interiors of the castle.
Silver tableware, by Stephanie Hornig, for Jarosinski & Vaugoin.
Pott’s ‘Tree of Life’ chandelier lit up the reading room, filled with family heirlooms, diaries, albums letters and portraits. Austria-born, London-based Hornig also played with light and reflection; her tableware brought a new sparkle to the sombre winter dining room. The collection was Hornig’s first ever works in silver, created in collaboration with Viennese silver manufacturer Jarosinski & Vaugoin.
In addition to the resident designers’ projects, Liechtenstein invited a further 19 designers to show new works that ‘explore one aspect of morphosis, or showing one passage of it, or two different types of elements’. Peppered across one of the most decadent baroque rooms of the house, Germans Ermičs’ sublime glass pieces complemented new benches by Os & Oos, Marcin Rusak’s experimental ‘Perishable’ series, and lighting by Sabine Marcelis.
‘It’s all about relationships, and how people come together,’ Liechtenstein mused, on inviting designers to show at the bucolic location (many attended the roaring opening, which included an Ibiza DJ spinning decks in the ballroom and goulash for the late-night partiers). ‘[The designers] notice things in my house I’ve seen but haven’t really noticed before, and that’s really special.’
The castle of Schloss Hollenegg dates back to the 12th century and is located in the Austrian market town of Schwanberg. Courtesy Schloss Hollenegg
Each of the designers’ pieces explore the theme of morphosis. Left, ’Tunnel’ bench, by Os & Oos. Right, ’Shaping Colour’ table by Germans Ermičs.
Left, ’Filter’ light, by Sabine Marcelis. Right, a piece from Marcin Rusak’s ’Perishable’ series.
Designer in residence Lex Pott’s Tree of Light’ chandeliers lit up a previously unused reading room.
Left, ’Possible Tools’, by Celia-Hannes. Right, ’The Copper Mirror’, by Nel Verbeke.
The interiors of Schloss Hollenegg for Design span baroque to renaissance.
Exploring sculptures with mesh was Dutch duo Odd Matter (left), while London-based Studio Furthermore experimented with ceramic foams.
INFORMATION
‘Morphosis’ is open until 31 May, by appointment only. For more information, visit the Schloss Hollenegg for Design website
ADDRESS
Schloss Hollenegg for Design
Hollenegg 1
Schwanberg 8530
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Sujata Burman is a writer and editor based in London, specialising in design and culture. She was Digital Design Editor at Wallpaper* before moving to her current role of Head of Content at London Design Festival and London Design Biennale where she is expanding the content offering of the showcases. Over the past decade, Sujata has written for global design and culture publications, and has been a speaker, moderator and judge for institutions and brands including RIBA, D&AD, Design Museum and Design Miami/. In 2019, she co-authored her first book, An Opinionated Guide to London Architecture, published by Hoxton Mini Press, which was driven by her aim to make the fields of design and architecture accessible to wider audiences.
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
The Mercury Prize nominees for 2024 have been revealed
Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and Beth Gibbons are amongst this year's nominees
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
Tour the Natural History Museum’s new gardens, a Jurassic lark in London
The Natural History Museum in London has unveiled two new gardens, with resident dinosaurs, after a transformation led by architects Feilden Fowles
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Nendo’s collaborations with Kyoto artisans go on view in New York
‘Nendo sees Kyoto’ is on view at Friedman Benda (until 15 October 2022), showcasing the design studio's collaboration with six artisans specialised in ancient Japanese crafts
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
Sabine Marcelis’ swivelling marble seats bring London square to life
London Design Festival 2022: Sabine Marcelis presents Swivel (until November 2022), in partnership with Almacantar and with natural stone by SolidNature
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
London Design Festival 2022: design highlights from across the city
London Design Festival 2022 brought us a life-sized media platform, public seating by Sabine Marcelis, and exhibitions across the city’s districts
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Italian craftsmanship comes to Los Angeles in this eclectic Venice Canals apartment
Boffi Los Angeles celebrates a juxtaposition of texture throughout a waterside bolthole
By Hannah Silver Last updated
-
Design Miami/Basel 2022 explores the Golden Age
Design Miami/Basel 2022, led by curatorial director Maria Cristina Didero, offers a positive spin after the unprecedented times of the pandemic, and looks at the history and spirit of design
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Kvadrat’s flagship New York showrooms encompass colourful design codes
Industrial designer Jonathan Olivares and architect Vincent Van Duysen have worked with Danish textile brand Kvadrat on the vast new space, also featuring furniture by Moroso
By Hannah Silver Last updated
-
What to see at New York Design Week 2022
Discover Wallpaper’s highlights from New York Design Week 2022 (10 – 20 May 2022): the fairs, exhibitions and design openings to discover
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
Colour defines LA ceramics studio and showroom of Bari Ziperstein
Step inside the multifunctional ceramics studio, office and showroom of designer and artist Bari Ziperstein, designed by local firm Foss Hildreth
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated