Dividing his time between Germany and Italy, Egidio Marzona is an art and design collector and patron, as well as cofounder of dieDAS - Design Akademie Saaleck and the Marzona Stiftung Neue Saalecker Werkstätten. He enabled the acquisition of the former Saalecker Werkstätten for dieDAS.
Marzona was born in Bielefeld to an Italian family. His art collection is widely regarded as the largest, most important 20th-century avant-garde art collection in the world. A part of his art collection with focus on the 60s and 70s movements of Minimal Art, Conceptual Art, Land Art and Arte Povera is part of the Preußischer Kulturbesitz and mainly shown in the Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart in Berlin.
In 2016 his Archive of the Avant-garde (AdA), an art and archival collection containing more than 1.5 million pieces – widely regarded as the largest, most important 20th-century avant-garde collection in the world – was entrusted to the State of Saxony as one of the largest private cultural donations in the history of Germany.
Arne Cornelius Wasmuth is a historical restoration and preservation expert whose career has spanned work in television, radio, and film production. He is also a published author and lecturer on cultural heritage and related topics. Born in Hamburg and raised in Seoul and Lagos , he earned a B.A. from Columbia University, an M.Sc in International Relations from the London School of Economics, and an M.A. in Strategies for European Cultural Heritage and Preservation from the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt an der Oder. In 2017, together with collector and patron Egidio Marzona, Wasmuth conceived dieDAS.
Andreas Silbersack is co-founder of dieDAS - Design Akademie Saaleck and the Marzona Foundation Neue Saalecker Werkstätten and sits on the foundation's board. He lives and works in his birthplace Halle (Saale), Saxony-Anhalt.
In addition to numerous other tasks, Silbersack is active as Honorary President of the Saxony-Anhalt Sports Association. He is also Vice-President of Special Olympics Germany and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Winzervereinigung Freyburg-Unstrut eG. Together with the collector and patron Egidio Marzona and Arne Cornelius Wasmuth, he founded the Marzona Foundation New Saaleck Workshops and dieDAS - Design Academy Saaleck in 2018.
A consummate connector with an incredible eye, Berlin-based Tatjana Sprick has been navigating the boundaries between the creative disciplines for years, facilitating exciting collaborations and new ventures along the way. She began her career as a dressmaker for the Haute Couture before going on to become a set designer in the film industry, and has since expanded her focus to include fashion, design, craft, and more. Sprick has helped brands and institutions across the creative spectrum—and the globe—develop meaningful products, relationships, and experiences. She was responsible for initiating the design website L’ArcoBaleno and has advised and collaborated with clients such as the Fashion Council Germany, Yohji Yamamoto, Bikini Berlin, Dr Hauschka, Elitis, The DO School, as well as the multipurpose co-retail space ALHAMBRA BERLIN. As dieDAS's founding Director of Program and Development, she is responsible for overseeing the planning and execution of dieDAS programs, including the fellowship program and walk + talk Symposium, as well as helping the institution to build strong networks of collaborators, mentors, and supporters.
Since early 2022 Caroline Rebel serves as the office manager of the Marzona Stiftung. Rebel, who grew up in Düsseldorf, but long since lives in Berlin, was initially trained as a tailor and moved on to study business administration. She finished her studies with a paper on ecological marketing in the clothing industry. Since then, she has worked in capacities as sales manager, sales director, buyer and office manager for various employers and clients, amongst them Andreas Murkudis, Berlin.
Born in Moscow and raised in Vienna, Olga Durandina studied Linguistics and Literature at the Lomonosov Moscow State University before moving to Berlin to study Business Communications Management at the University of Applied Sciences (HTW). Prior to arriving at dieDAS, Olga worked for many years as a freelance translator, interpreter, and film production assistant for Russian and German public service television channels with a focus on cultural programming. She speaks four languages fluently.
Oscar Casas Pinto joins us each summer for the fellowship program, offering his expertise and support to ensure our busy workshops run smoothly and effectively.
During each summer’s fellowship, Andrea Sprick cooks delicious and healthy meals with love for the entire dieDAS team, our fellows, and our guests.