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The Garden Kingdom at a glance
Placeholder for the later illustrative overview map. The sites can already be opened in the draft preview.
The Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz combines landscape, architecture and art. Anyone looking at just one palace sees only a fragment: only in combination with paths, bodies of water, gardens and sweeping views does the character of this cultural landscape become tangible. The Garden Kingdom has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. UNESCO explains its significance as a landscape design in the spirit of the Enlightenment.
Discovering the Garden Kingdom through a photographic lens
Photography can change how a place is seen. An overall view shows how a building stands within its surroundings. A closer shot draws attention to shapes, surfaces and details. Two images of the same place in different light, in turn, tell a story of change. For the photographic exploration of the Garden Kingdom, such relationships are just as interesting as the single well-known motif.
The following seven areas form the starting point for this journey of discovery. They are a selection for the step-by-step development of this website, not a complete list of all the sites in the Garden Kingdom.
Wörlitz and Wörlitz Park
Wörlitz Palace, the Gothic House and Stein Island make Wörlitz a versatile starting point. Buildings and garden spaces can be viewed together here. The first in-depth focus of this website is dedicated to the sights of Wörlitz Park and the question of how images can make their relationships visible.
Luisium
Luisium Palace and Park are presented together. The country house built for Princess Louise is the starting point; the garden is essential to understanding the place. Photographically, the interplay between the architecture and its integration into the park offers a natural focus. Background: Kulturstiftung Dessau-Wörlitz.
Oranienbaum
In Oranienbaum, the palace, park and town layout belong together. The Dutch influence and the Anglo-Chinese garden give the place its own character. A sequence of images can show these different design forms side by side. Background: Oranienbaum Palace and Park.
Mosigkau
Palace and garden Mosigkau form their own focus. Exterior views, garden spaces and – where own photographs are available – glimpses inside the palace are intended to convey a coherent picture of the place. Historical context and image selection are being developed together.
Georgium in Dessau
In Georgium, the view leads from the palace into the landscape garden. For the later photographic presentation, both the overall grounds and individual garden structures are relevant. A shared site page will bring these motifs together.
Kühnau
Kühnau Park extends the journey of discovery with another landscape space. The planned site page looks at the park, the palace surroundings and the landscape together. Which motifs are covered in more depth depends on the available photographs.
Sieglitzer Berg
The forest park at Sieglitzer Berg adds its own character alongside the palaces and landscape gardens. The rebuilt Solitude pavilion and the design of the forest space form the starting point for the planned photographic exploration. Background: Kulturstiftung Dessau-Wörlitz.
Discover the seven sites
Oranienbaum · Luisium · Mosigkau · Georgium Dessau · Großkühnau and Kühnau Park · Sieglitzer Berg · Wörlitz Park
Photographs for a whole year
Anyone who would like to view the images away from the screen will find in the Garden Kingdom Calendar a selection of motifs from the Dessau-Wörlitz Garden Kingdom. The previous Wörlitz Calendar editions show the development of the calendar series.