To celebrate Schloss Hof's 300th anniversary, we once again curated the special exhibition at Schloss Hof and Schloss Niederweiden– this time with the title "Eugene of Savoy: The Man behind the Prince." The exhibition explored Prince Eugene's personality beyond his military fame: as a networker, collector, patron of architecture, and visionary.

All eyes on sustainability

Sustainable resource stewardship guided our exhibition design. We reused large parts of the previous year's architectural elements to serve our new concept, achieving added value in both creative innovation and environmental responsibility.

Design concept

The exhibition relied on a visually powerful and immersive staging. Right at the entrance, visitors encountered a strong visual opening: a larger-than-life portrait of the Prince. In the rooms, selected paintings and graphics were presented in greatly enlarged form. These flat motifs make fine details visible while simultaneously creating atmospheric scenes that harmoniously underscore the content of each respective room.

Schloss Hof | Eugene - Networker and Collector

In the historic ambiance of Schloss Hof, the exhibition illuminated Prince Eugene's rise to become one of the most influential personalities of Austrian Baroque epoch. It revealed him as a brilliant strategist, avid collector, and the heart of an elite intellectual circle.

Interactive elements encouraged visitors to explore further – notably the digital reconstruction of the "Bibliotheca Eugenia," Eugene's impressive book collection. Tactile displays enhanced this experience: visitors could touch and feel various types of historical leather used in book bindings.

Schloss Niederweiden | Eugene - Architecture Patron and Visionary

Schloss Niederweiden, a Baroque architectural gem in its own right, showcased Eugene's most significant architectural accomplishments. His last major development project – Schloss Hof with its extensive gardens – was staged as an expression of aristocratic lifestyle, wealth and status.

A "theater stage", built the previous year, was surrounded with triangular walls that displayed motifs that could be perceived from different perspectives. These images offered visitors constantly changing visual impressions as they moved through the exhibition, depending on the vantage point.

A thread installation illustrated networks, property situations, and the spatial dimensions of his possessions and building projects.

Excerpts from Eugene's exotic animal collection were displayed in a large-format showcase – which was also repurposed from the previous exhibition. The full-surface covering with integrated observation windows provided surprising glimpses into a fascinating world of wildlife and offered visitors both young and old an unusual perspective on Eugene's passion for collecting.

Originals, Object Conservation & Implementation

Both venues featured numerous original artifacts. Working closely with lenders, we developed custom mounting systems and display solutions that satisfied the conservation needs for protecting diverse materials and objects – ranging from precious paintings to fragile book bindings.

Planning phase: seven months | performance phases: LPH 1 – 7 | Completion: March 2025 | Area: Schloss Hof Estate 512 m² & Schloss Niederweiden Estate 413 m² | Exhibits > 500 items | Commissioned by: Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- u. Betriebsges.m.b.H.