Exhibition
4.4. to 26.10.2025
Wilhelmshöhe Palace

Collecting everyday objects is a classic hobby. Not least because of shows like "Bares für Rares," antiques, rarities, vintage items, and the associated passion for collecting have been on everyone's lips in recent years. But what drives people to collect things over a long period of time, sometimes their whole life, and often also to invest a lot of money in this collection?

This group partially goes public with their collections, engages in word-of-mouth advertising, or attends collector fairs. Others, on the other hand, pursue their passion more discreetly. Perhaps they do not find the object of their collection interesting enough for others. One of the goals of the exhibition is to bring these collectors, especially, into the public eye.

From garden gnomes to zebra crossings

The spectrum ranges from matchboxes and advertising postcards to pencils and shellac records, all the way to precious porcelain from the Royal Porcelain Manufactory Berlin (KPM). Garden gnomes or zebra crossing signs from all over the world are also represented, as well as heart-shaped stones, tin toys, or death dolls.

The collections cover a period from the early 17th century to the present day. While one person's collecting passion focuses on the colorful figures of "My Little Pony," another gathers electric guitars from the 1960s and 1970s. Who doesn't think of the wild times of rock music? Rare prints and art from the Kassel Academy of the 1920s, elegant vases from the 1950s, and travel souvenirs with motifs from Kassel: they have all sparked a very personal collecting passion.