Grünes Gewölbe: "Come to the dazzling ice rink…"

Schlittschuhläufer auf einem Schmuckkasten

"Come to the dazzling ice rink…" Winter at the Grünes Gewölbe

This cabinet exhibition looks at the motif of winter as reflected in the arts of the 17th and 18th centuries. The main focal point consists of precious objects from the Grünes Gewölbe which represent the cold season of the year in the form of allegories and as reflections of everyday winter activities such as ice skating, but which also show the negative side of winter, which had a particularly adverse effect on the lower classes.

Exhibition Site Residenzschloss

DATES 30/11/2016—13/02/2017

These personifications made of ivory and bronze exemplify a particularly popular form of presentation during the Baroque period, in which winter - as one of the four seasons - not only represented the end of the year but was also symbolic of creation and decay in nature. The allegories of spring, summer, autumn and winter painted in enamel on the base of the ice-skating Dutchman provide further insight into the wide range of motifs, which also includes Dutch winter landscape paintings by such artists as Isaac van Ostade and Allart van Everdingen.

The luxurious nature of princely winter sleigh rides, which also frequently took place at the Dresden court, is evident not only in the designs for ornate sleighs and magnificent teams of horses, but also in the brow pieces belonging to a lavish horse bridle for the Diana and Cupid sleighs made for the Saxon Electoral Prince Friedrich August (II) in the early 18th century. The bells that can be admired on the red and gold bridle of the Cupid sleigh, which often covered the entire team of horses, can be seen both in the designs for sleigh bridles and in the ivory group “Horse-Drawn Sleigh with Two Moors”, which dates from shortly before 1711 and is held in the Grünes Gewölbe.

Thus, selected “wintry” objects from the Grünes Gewölbe and the Rüstkammer as well as drawings and paintings from the Kupferstich-Kabinett and the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden are able to interact in an exciting and enchanting way, providing insights into the various facets of the cold period of the year and its interpretation through the arts.

Further Exhibitions