the grand autumn exhibition ‘the women of soestdijk’ will elaborately showcase the rich history of paleis soestdijk, combined with contemporary fashion, design, and craftsmanship. the palace owes its illustrious status also to the women who were eager to reside here during the summer. their influence has resulted in one of the most interesting empire palaces of europe.

from october 12th to january 7th visitors are allowed to climb the stairway and admire the first floor. never before could visitors enjoy the stain glass ceiling, the stunning private bathrooms, and the glass space that was used to paint the landscape of zocher.

www.paleissoestdijk.nl 

on wednesday october 11th h.r.h. princess margarita de bourbon de parme opened the exhibition ‘the women of soestdijk’.

this grand autumn exhibition elaborately showcases the rich history of this palace, combined with contemporary fashion and design.

photo: maya meijer-bergmans (owner of soestdijk palace), h.r.h. princess margarita de bourbon de parme, nicole uniquole (cultural entrepreneur and exhibition maker).
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paleis soestdijk heeft voor de tentoonstelling ‘de vrouwen van soestdijk’ in 1 week bijna 10.000 tickets verkocht! een groot succes! 30 paleisruimtes zijn opnieuw ingericht en geven een frisse, versaille-achtige kijk op deze prachtige locatie.

het is bijzonder dat een deel van de 170 kamers van het paleis voor het eerst toegankelijk is voor publiek. een ware ontdekkingstocht voor de bezoeker.

tickets at the box office and online via
www.paleissoestdijk.nl

uniquole exhibitions stand out with a powerful story which is told in fairytale settings that evoke a sense of wonder, and with this endure. the exhibitions always receive a lot of media attention. this makes it appealing to sponsors to be represented. for ‘the women of soestdijk’ uniquole writes and produces the sponsorship proposals and carries the convervations, together with maya meijer-bergmans. for abn amro uniquole developed a sponsor program, in collaboration with maya meijer-bergmans. the partnership focuses on mutual reinforcement.

how do you handle heritage pieces of great historical value? students of the wood- and furniture college are taught this at paleis soestdijk during an afternoon-long program. a perfect work experience and network opportunity, at the initiative of uniquole, in collaboration with the state department of cultural heritage and the rijksmuseum amsterdam.

splendid grandeur! baroque palatial rooms with giant chandeliers, stories about kings and queens, princes and princesses, royal tableware, regal jewellery, it all speaks to the imagination. in the german city of fulda this all is on show during the summer of 2022 in a spectacular summer exhibition revolving around our own orange-nassau dynasty.

occasion is the 250^th anniversary of king william I frederick (1777-1843). it is not widely known, but before becoming our first king, from 1802 to 1806 he ruled over the principality of orange-nassau in germany. for the first king of the netherlands, it all started in fulda!

www.fulda2022.de

photo christian tech

for the exhibition in fulda, uniquole selected stunning works on loan from, amongst others, the royal archives, jewellery house mellerio, silver museum schoonhoven, paleis het loo and many artists, galleries, photographers, and designers. all requests were prepared by uniquole. the vonderau museum in fulda submitted the final application.

with thanks to dr verse and judith mader.

in her exhibitions, nicole niquole amplifies the beauty of the location. to achieve this, she first explores the location in all its facets. all spaces are photographed: the ceilings, wall coverings, panelling, and floors. everything is documented in high resolution. the exhibition elements, such as stages, carpets, displays, and signage uniquole harmonises with the style elements and colour schemes of the location. detailed photographs are artistically edited into printable files. the cnc milling machine manufactures all exhibition elements perfectly, down to the millimetre. the printers print the wallpaper, sticker, and foil materials to cover the elements. this is how a “gesamtkunstwerk” is realised, under the direction of a single contact person per project.

in all exhibitions, at an early stage uniquole looks for possible collaborations with design degrees. how could students present themselves on a grand stage? can a project be incorporated into the curriculum? for the exhibition in fulda a close collaboration with the master tailoring course in amsterdam was chosen. the department researched costumes from the period between 1780-1830. all costumes are executed in white to make it match seamlessly with the white kaiser hall of the palace. the styling was done by the renowned stylist marten spruit.

the committee of recommendation supports the content concept of the summer exhibition “design & dynasty” in 2022. uniquole expresses thanks for their involvement. the committee consists of:

• dr heiko wingenfeld (mayor of fulda)
• viktor v. herzog von ratibor und fürst von corvey, prinz zu hohenlohe-schillingfürst-breunner-enkevoirth
• h.e. mevrouw mr martine l.a. van loon-labouchere, honorary mistress of the robes of her majesty the queen beatrix and his majesty king willem alexander

• dr jeroen koch (author of king william i biography)
• mr frederik willem graaf van hogendorp (descendant of one of the founders of the dutch monarchy who together with king william i established the constitution)
• mrs laure-isabelle mellerio (director and artistic director of the french jewellery house of mellerio)

photo copyright erwin olaf

one of the most important interventions by curator nicole uniquole for the royal showpieces was the removal of the ropes, that prevented people entering the chambers. for the palace this was not without trepidation, but it is through exhibitions like this that palace het loo stays relevant in the future.

a solution for the sometimes-fragile floors of the palace halls was found in printed carpets, designed in collaboration with maarten spruyt and tsur reshef.

the ceilings designed by daniel marot consist of compartments with various painted decorations. the carpets reflect these ceilings, showing the visitors how new is inspired by old.

photo: marjon hoogervorst

for the first time in history the palace deviated from the permanent design of the royal halls. the ropes were removed and through an ingenious exhibition design developed by uniquole, the public was granted access to the heart of the palace. with this new layout and the addition of fashion, porcelain and objects nicole uniquole has engaged in a thought provoking dialogue between the royal taste of before and design now. the theme “look different” was further elaborated on in the eponymous catalogue, which invited the audience to truly look at the ceilings, walls and the extraordinary collection through different eyes. following the success of royal showpieces I the exhibition royal showpieces II could be admired at palace het loo in apeldoorn.

de ‘royal showpieces’ exhibitions at palace het loo were built under the direction of Gerrit Labberton.

summer 2014

from the museum depots, nicole uniquole selected pieces which are rarely shown to the public and combined these with design from today.
with a new setup, museum pieces from the depots and the addition of clothing, tableware, and art objects uniquole created a striking dialogue between the royal taste of before and dutch design from today.
for the exhibitions “royal showpieces” I & II uniquole was given a lot of freedom to use the depots, containing many treasures begging to be discovered.

in the company of curator paul rem there were many “rummages” around the attics of the palace.
this enabled uniquole to curate unique collections for her exhibitions at paleis het loo.

photograph with paul rem, curator paleis het loo

in the permanent setup of paleis het loo all rooms were “roped off”. to allow visitors to the “royal showpieces” exhibitions to wander around freely, a matter of high importance to uniquole, it was necessary to remove this protection. however, to protect the historic wooden floors it was decided by nicole uniquole in collaboration with maarten spruit and tsur reshef to lay down carpets in all rooms. and not just any carpet! in all the spaces the carpet is a copy of the ceiling. based on the many photographs of the historic spaces the design was created. in close collaboration with desso the final print was executed in wool. a sight to behold.

lighting armatures ‘flying candles’: ingo maurer
photo menno mulder

at nicole uniquole’s request, florian seyd and ueli signer of the wunderkammer, in collaboration with the florists of paleis het loo, built a large-scale flower installation matching the historic portraits and the stucco. it resulted in a striking, colourful floral piece in the overall white room.

photo marjon hoogervorst

each exhibition comes with its own catalogue. this can vary from a small handout to an extensive catalogue with a description of all objects and essays on the relevant theme. of course, always with stunning visuals.

a prerequisite for a beautiful, appealing publication. the graphic design and print preparations are all done in house.

the cultural foundation dessau-worlitz has asked uniquole to develop a major summer exhibition. 53 palace rooms are furnished… more than 1250 m2 of exhibition space.

with the exhibition ‘dutch design – house of orange’ for six months the baroque palace oranienbaum revolves around contemporary dutch design and fashion, combined with historical objects from the royal house archives. uniquole is responsible for curating, organizing and producing this grand summer exhibition. the history of the palace and the inspiring story of princess henriette catharina are exceptionally suited for a unique confrontation between old and new. the beautifully restored spaces offer room to the top of the dutch design and fashion world. executed at the request of  kulturstiftung dessauworlitz and in close collaboration with the dutch embassy in berlin and the royal hosue archives.

recommendation palace oranienbaum

an entrepeneuring dutch princess built palace oranienbaum during the golden age. she was the one who made the region blossom in terms of craftsmanship and economy. in addition she collected high quality ceramics. her husband, the ruler of anhalt dessau, collected excellent glassworks. 

based on the richly detailes orange-nassau portraits from the collection of the kulturstiftung dessauworlitz the story of princess henriette catharina and her love of craftsmanship is told. 

this daughter of amalia of solms and prince frederik hendrik speaks to the imagination. both the portraits and the original use of the over 50 palatial rooms act as the red thread throughout this grand summer exhibition.

in 2012 the palatial rooms were filled by uniquole with a mix of artisanal crafted pieces, such as furniture, jewellery, glass and ceramic objects, accessories, and handmade couture pieces, complemented by various arts and crafts objects and historic tableware from the royal archives.
the history of the palace and the evocative story of princess henriette catharina are perfectly suited for a unique confrontation between old and new. the historic objects belong to the royal collections, paleis het loo and private collections.

in this “private apartment” the following objects from the royal collections were exhibited: silver travel toilet of queen emma (1878) and the diamond pendant by queen emma with the engraved portrait of king william II, oscar massin (1879).

with the exhibition “dutch design – house of orange”, for six months the baroque oranienbaum palace completely revolves around contemporary dutch design and fashion, in a dialogue with historic objects. the beautifully renovated spaces offer room to the best of the dutch design and fashion world. queen beatrix and president gauck opened the exhibition.

works on show are by prominent dutch designers, among whom viktor & rolf, gijs bakker, hella jongerius, iris van herpen, richard hutten, ted noten, spijkers & spijkers, marcel wanders, bernard heesen, and piet-hein eek. young and up-coming talents too are offered a place inside the moat of this unique location.

each exhibition comes with its own catalogue. this can vary from a small handout to an extensive catalogue with a description of all objects and essays on the relevant theme. of course, always with stunning visuals.

a prerequisite for a beautiful, appealing publication. the graphic design and print preparations are all done in house.

the committee of recommendation supports the content concept of the summer exhibition “house of orange” in 2012. uniquole expresses thanks for their involvement. the committee consists of:

• prof. dr. titus m. eliëns (former head of collections gemeentemuseum den haag, professor of industtrial design at the university of leiden)
• christoph boninger (designer)
• dr. eva maria hoyer (director grassi museum of applied arts)

• prof. dr florian hufnagl (former director museum neue sammlung munchen)
• prof. dr. johan ter molen (former director paleis het loo, professor by special appointment “applied arts, and arts & crafts” at the radboud university nijmegen)
• prof. axel müller-schöll (professor of interior architecture burg giebichenstein university of art and design halle)
• drs. ingeborg de roode (curator industrial design at het stedelijk museum amsterdam)

photo: photography agency hoge noorden

her majesty queen beatrix opens the exhibition ‘dutch design – house of orange’ at oranienbaum and the german president joachim gauck. in 4 months the usually quiet oranienbaum was inundated with over 60.000 visitors of the exhibition. max bruinsma: ‘you can conclude that this is how nicole uniquole follows suit of her illustrious predecessor.’ in reference to the way princess henriette catharina helped this region blossom by founding factories and building the palace here, this observation underlines the importance of culture in economy.