Stories

Crane in silver. Animal motifs are not common in Wiwen Nilsson's production, but they do occur. He drew inspiration from Gösta Adrian-Nilsson in his planar geometric reliefs.
A profile. Wiwen Nilsson, nicknamed "the monk" with his sharply combed hair, is one of the greatest figures in Swedish craftsmanship. Now, Kulturen in Lund has gathered nearly 500 works from his production.

In Wiwen Nilsson's workshop in Lund, jugs, candlesticks, scales, wafer boxes, chalices and crosses line the walls behind glass. Everything is made of silver. The surfaces are polished to a matte finish. Occasionally we find spheres, such as the lid of a jug or the base of a candlestick. Otherwise the contours are always straight. The forms are not simple. They are pure. It is possible to observe other shapes, but not even the slightest change in these very shapes.

The silver must go through several artistic procedures before a piece of jewellery is ready to adorn its wearer, as Mr Nilsson in Lund can tell you.

The flat surface has its own beauty and style" Silver plate, goblet and two rings, the upper one in rock crystal, onyx and silver, the lower one in rock crystal and silver. In the upper corner is the creator Wiwen Nilsson.

Wiwen Nilsson's cross-shaped jewellery is among the most interesting of its kind, writes Brita Palm, BA, in her three-credit thesis on Wiwen Nilsson's silver work. Wiwen Nilsson calls the lower right cross in silver and onyx "The Beggar Monk", with "features of the limited power and asceticism of the Middle Ages". The four crosses above, are all in silver and rock crystal. The first in the row also has onyx on the arms and under the central stone. The outermost has a red Indian garnet in the centre and 14 rock crystals set lengthwise to emphasise a movement outwards. Cross No. 2 is made up of four squares and a sphere of rock crystal. Cross No. 3 is a so-called St. Peter's Cross made up of only five stones. It was acquired by Nationalmuseum. The hexagonal goblet has a shape that often recurs in Wiwen Nilsson's work. The ring is made of gold and amethyst, and the bracelet from 1956 is made of platinum and moon stones.

Wiwen Nilsson in his own environment and form. As can be seen, not all of his silver cups are adorned with "sharp edges"; his motto is that each object should be what it is meant to be and not represent anything else. The dedicated portrait is of opera singer Aulikki Rautavaara, and she is wearing a Wiwen diadem in her hair.

Wiwen Nilsson in front of a sculpture of himself, made by the artist Christian Berg. Everyone from Skåne, most Swedes, and connoisseurs and professionals all over the world know him: the man with the tidy monk's fringe, the artist and pioneer of modern silversmithing, court jeweller Wiwen Nilsson.

"The flat surface has its own beauty and style" Silver plate, goblet and two rings, the upper one in rock crystal, onyx and silver, the lower one in rock crystal and silver. In the upper corner is the creator Wiwen Nilsson.