"A small piece of paper can mean the whole world" (WOLS). Thousands of works on paper are preserved in collections of prints and drawings. Kassel's collection alone is home to over 60,000 watercolours, pencil sketches, gouaches, copperplate engravings, woodcuts, posters, illustrated books and much more, all carefully stored for future generations in the repository. Each sheet of paper tells a story.
Since when has it been possible to reproduce pictures with the aid of technology? What was the fate of Sarah Bartmaan, the so-called "Hottentot Venus"? How does Paolo Veronese approach the process of coming up with ideas for his artworks with drawing pen in hand and an initially blank sheet of sketch paper? What wig did Ludwig XIV wear? What did the architect Julius Eugen Ruhl see on his trip to Italy? Why is Albrecht Dürer's "Melencolia I" so famous?
Works on paper tell stories and amaze the visitors. Beyond this, they also offer unique aesthetic pleasures - the beauty of a single perfectly executed line on a piece of white paper, the details of a copperplate engraving, the velvety, deep black line of a drypoint etching or the brilliant colours of a watercolour painting.
Works on paper are extremely sensitive to exposure to light and are therefore exhibited only within the scope of special exhibitions. However, you are welcome to view our light-sensitive treasures close up without any distracting glass and frames in the collection of prints and drawings study room, which is located in the church wing of Schloss Wilhelmshöhe palace – admire them, learn from them, appreciate them.
Please book a date and time by calling us on: +49 (0)561 316 80-0