Although the Bauhaus Movement was rooted in Germany between the World Wars, it wasn’t until after WWII that the aesthetic was free to blossom on an international scale. As wars sometimes do, WWII cleared-away the previous popular aesthetic—Art Deco—leaving the public hungry for “the next big thing.” The clean lines of German Bauhaus had a strong influence on Scandinavian design of the Post-War period.
One such designer was Aksel Holmsen, maker of the Norwegian enameled silver cufflinks pictured above. Born in 1873, Holmsen trained with master jeweler David Andersen, became certified, and opened his own “smithy” in 1906. Holmsen’s clean angular (Bauhaus-inspired) lines became a part of Scandinavian Modern’s fresh, new look. Additionally, Holmsen used enameling—long a Norwegian strong suit—to give his pieces a rich, yet clean look. Like many Scandinavian designers, Holmsen employed a lot of sterling silver which was a more-democratic, less costly, more affordable material than gold.
The cufflinks above, made in the 1940’s or 1950’s, are 925 sterling silver, finished with crisp white enameling. They are sizable enough to have visual weight yet refined enough to be tasteful. Please click on the photo above to learn more about them.
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