I collect, therefore I am

GLASS AND STONES: THE THRILL OF THE HUNT AND A SENSE OF ORDER
People do it for all sorts of reasons – and yet, almost everyone collects things in one way or another. Some indulge their sense of order in a collection and hoard nothing but green glass. Others are drawn to the thrill of the hunt – seaching, finding and adding to their treasures. Others believe in the future value of certain objects and see their collection as an investment. And then there is the kind we all know from childhood: collecting small things like stones or shells.

RUBBER DUCKS AND BROOMSTICKS: STAGING THE EVERYDAY
In fact, the fascination of a collection does not necessarily depend on its financial value. There are remarkable collections of thousands of orange wrappers or matchboxes. Some have also attracted considerable attention – take the rubber duck collection of the American Charlotte Lee, for example. She made it into the Guinness World Records in 1996 with 5,631 different rubber ducks in her “duck room.” Closer to home and equally curious are the Broom Worlds in Günzburg. Christl Hirner has been collecting for almost 50 years and now displays more than 400 brooms from around the world in a private museum.

FUN FACT
Since the Middle Ages, no one has believed a unicorn horn to be genuine. Yet no classic cabinet of curiosities would be complete without a narwhal tusk.

POMP AND POLLOCK: THE FASCINATION OF THE EXTRAORDINARY
When people think of collecting, they often think of famous and valuable collections such as those of Peggy Guggenheim or Yves Saint Laurent. Peggy Guggenheim was not only a dazzling personality. Between 1930 and 1950, she was also an influential patron who helped artists such as Jackson Pollock gain recognition. Today, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection with works ranging from Kandinsky and Dalí to Klee is open to the public and housed in her former private palazzo, the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni on the Grand Canal in Venice. Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé were equally eccentric and, above all, devoted lovers of luxury. Their collection included modern art and decorative arts as well as rare antiques and Old Masters. Christie’s described it as one of the most magnificent private collections of its time and auctioned more than 600 pieces in 2009 for a record total of € 373,935,500.

PAINTINGS AND CONCERT TICKETS: IDENTITY AND MEMORY
Whether inconspicuous or luxurious, every object we collect is also a symbol. A world-famous painting in a private collection represents power and wealth. A concert ticket is no mere piece of paper, but a reminder of a wonderful evening. Our objects always reveal something about who we are and what matters to us. And many of our collected treasures remind us of people and places that give our lives meaning.
P.S. Speaking of keepsakes: we have also been exploring the idea of collecting at the Burg – and are currently developing our first limited-edition collector’s item with just 300 pieces. Not only Burg fans have something to be excited about …