In the Summer of 2023, we won the competition to design the 2024 and 2025 special exhibitions at Schloss Hof Estate and Schloss Niederweiden Castles. The call for applications included the scenographic staging of the exhibition “Imperial Weddings“ covering the topics “In Love? Betrothed! Married.“ at Schloss Hof Estate and “A Cause for Celebration“ at Schloss Niederweiden. We aimed at reusing parts of the existing exhibition infrastructure, such as partitions ad displays, and respecting the historic building fabric and handling the multitude of exhibits (roughly 500 items) across all our ideas and plans.

The exhibition design aimed at highlighting the topic of marriage in the Habsburg dynasty – from courtship to engagement to the actual wedding festivities, matching the existing premises and rooms of the two estates. We developed a two-color concept that links both estates with the topic of the main exhibition.

The exhibition in Schloss Hof estate explores the background of matrimonial policy in ruling houses, the decisive criteria in courtship and the dynastic expectations towards the couples. In ruling houses was not only an alliance between two individuals but also between two dynasties. Love had little to do with it. Children of a marriageable age were the pawns of politics and had little chance to have a say in choosing a partner. To illustrate these rigid procedures and the policy of dynastic marriage in the exhibition design, we opted for a very reduced straight-forward staging. By adapting the existing movable walls and installing new partitions, we created an ideal floor space for the large number of exhibits.

The exhibition at Schloss Niederweiden revolves around the procedure of imperial weddings and the spectacular celebrations that showed that weddings, with pomp, pageantry, and elaborately staged festivities, were in a league of their own as the most important events for the Imperial Court. The exhibition provides some background to the Habsburg Dynasty’s matrimonial policy and gives insights into the selection of a potential spouse, the courtship, the bridal journey, and the wedding banquet. These lavish events in the wake of an imperial wedding certainly provided unforgettable highlights of life at court. Large-scale colored elements in the exhibition rooms highlighted the focus on celebrating and festivities.

Opportunities to interact await the guests in four rooms, including an interactive smell station, and the replica of a historical folded painting. The central room of Schloss Niederweiden, the garden pavilion, features the staging of two operas on the replica of a theatre stage (4 meter wide and 5 meters long). The theater alley hang of specific items adds a three-dimensional effect to the opera scenes that encourages visitors to explore the individual scenic images.

When designing the exhibition architecture, we also considered the preservation requirements of the many original objects and items on loan. One of our solutions was to design and finish all display cases as climatic display cases. As a Green certified agency, sustainability is a major concern for us. Naturally, we made a point during the planning phase of ensuring that the exhibition was implemented in a way that allows to reuse large parts of it for the next special exhibition in 2025.

Planning phase: seven months | Performance phases: LPH/PPH 1 – 7 | Completion: March 2024 | Area: Schloss Hof 337 m² & Schloss Niederweiden 413 m² | Exhibits: > 500 items| Commissioned by: Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- u. Betriebsges.m.b.H.