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For the exhibition The Blue Swords,
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Meissen in the GDR,
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there could hardly be a more perfect place than the
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Japanese Palace here on the Neustadt side in Dresden.
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Because it was once conceived by Augustus the Strong as the
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porcelain palace that was to house his collection.
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Our responsibility is to
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trace the history of Meissen porcelain in our collection
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from individual periods.
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And a very important period is that of the GDR era,
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that time of the divided Germanys,
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where, however, the identification with the Meissen brand
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existed equally in both Germanys.
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The Blue Swords, Meissen in the GDR,
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shows the whole variety of new creations of that time,
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from medals to murals,
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from the style of socialist realism to sake sets
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specifically for Japanese customers or artistic
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porcelains that were aimed more at museums and galleries.
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But we're not just showing the porcelain itself,
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we're also showing the creative process and the context in which
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this new design took place.
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So we show sketches and drafts,
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but we also show theater figures or film clips
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that served as inspiration for the artists.
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At the beginning of our exhibition preparations, we conducted
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interviews with contemporary witnesses at the Meissen
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porcelain manufactory and there we also asked questions
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about the company culture,
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about the urban society in Meissen,
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but also interviewed artists.
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The porcelain is a very harmonious
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product of glaze, of painting.
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It is the handiwork,
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it is the history and indeed the inimitable art
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and craftsmanship of the manufactory's artists,
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which is unparalleled in the world.
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The baroque heritage always remained present,
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that was also in demand from the mostly more conservative customers.
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most of the time.
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But it was also a political wish
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to give this traditional material its own,
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socialism-appropriate character, and that was
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actually the balancing act that the artists were tasked with.
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At the beginning of 2025, we started a citizen participation project and
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called on private households to look for Meissen
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porcelain from the GDR era.
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This resulted in a very colorful picture with the classics
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like the famous meat tenderizer from the Meissen
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manufactory,
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but also vases with Indian painting or a medal of
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Katarina Witt.
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Particularly exciting was our display case with the awards
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of the GDR made of Meissen porcelain and we met many exciting
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people,
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for example the pop singer Jörg Hindemith,
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who made his trophy available to us, or
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the only Olympic champion in weightlifting from the GDR, Joachim Kunz.