Meissen celebrates 300 years of famous porcelain
Meissen, a small town in eastern
Germany, is gearing up for celebrations marking the 300th anniversary
of its famous porcelain factory bearing the same name.
A year-long exhibition will reflect Meissen's remarkable history, which has seen it survive 11 European wars, as well as 40 years of communism after World War II.
One highlight will be an exquisite collection of porcelain commissioned in 1772 by Catherine the Great, then empress of Russia.
The empress ordered an extensive range of figurines, which took Johann Joachim Kaendler and Michel Victor Acier - two famous Meissen master modellers - more than three years to complete.
Additional works of art in porcelain by modern-day artists, painters and modellers will also be on display, according to Meissen's chief executive Chistian Kurtzke.
All told, more than 3,000 precious pieces of porcelain will be shown at the exhibition beginning January 23, 2010. "Meissen porcelain serves as a bridge between cultures, nations and religions," company officials said.
The exhibition will also feature the decree signed 300 years ago by Frederick Augustus the Strong, establishing the founding of the manufactory.
The "royal decree" was issued throughout Europe in Latin, French, German and Dutch, which at the time were regarded as the four most important languages.
Meissen's early fame was propelled by diplomatic gifts and large commissions from Europe's ruling houses in the 18th century.
At exhibitions in London, Paris, Vienna and Chicago, the innovative artistic skills of Meissen's workers helped the company win international recognition.
Today, Meissen has 300 authorized dealers - 28 of them in the US alone - and employs 800 people, most of them at its plant in the German state of Saxony.
Some 300,000 tourists visit the Haus Meissen museum each year, at the company's headquarters. Despite the lingering effects of the global economic crisis, Kurtzke, who was appointed chief executive in 2008, was upbeat.
"When it comes to the appreciation of value, our products outperform real estate, stocks and even gold," Kurtzke said.
But he admitted the ceramics industry had suffered a "fundamental structural crisis" in recent years, as companies were hit by declining revenues and Britain's Wedgewood went out of business.
On his appointment, Kurtzke says he was faced with the task of "sanitizing and repositioning" the Meissen brand.
Today, there are four product fields - Fine Living and Art, Fine Dining, Fine Jewellery and Accessories, and Professional Services, offering custom-made pieces.
"People had come to think of Meissen in terms of tableware only," Kurtzke told the German Press Agency dpa. "In fact, our product range is much more diverse."
Today, the company operates mainly in Asia, where the "Made in Germany" label is held in very high esteem. Meissen is particularly popular in Japan and Taiwan, and has seen its brand grow in China.
"For Asians, porcelain is a veritable cultural asset," said Meissen's head of public relations, Cornelia Imhof.
Meissen's range of jewellery has proven particularly popular in Italy, and interest was also growing in the Arab world, according to Imhof.
A recent German study revealed that Meissen porcelain - identified by its distinctive crossed-swords logo - remained one of the best known German luxury brands, second only to the Porsche car.
Imhof said the company's success rested on a rigorous training programme for Meissen employees, as well as its in-house laboratory, capable of producing up to 10,000 colours.
Meissen products are known as "White Gold" around the world, as they are considered a safe investment.
The porcelain's most important ingredient is kaolin or china clay, mined since 1764 from Europe's smallest mine, in Seilitz, a village of just 14 inhabitants, close to Meissen.
Meissen counts many of the world's rich and famous amongst its customers, yet Kurtzke was wary of defining the company's target group by income alone.
"Meissen can be found wherever there is culture," Kurtzke said.