Viva Vivianna: Georg Jensen salutes a jewellery design great
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

A clear instinct for minimalism and pure, organic forms singles out the mid-century designs of Swedish jeweller Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe, better known as ‘Torun’. A prodigious silversmith, Torun secured her first exhibition aged 21. By the late 1940s and early 1950s, she was part of the Paris art studio fraternity, counting Picasso and Billie Holiday as friends.
Torun, who died in 2004 aged 77, is best known for her standout jewellery for Georg Jensen (opens in new tab). This year, the Danish design house is celebrating the 50th anniversary of their creative coming together. She began working with Jensen in 1967, creating a jewellery language all her own that was pointedly not in thrall to rare, expensive materials. Her designs include the 1968 ‘Möbius’ collection, made from a continuous, fluid band of twisting silver.
Her approach was consciously ‘anti-status’, and she preferred to work with silver, steel and semi-precious stones, even pebbles. As such, her modernist designs avoided conservative clichés surrounding jewellery, freeing it from its status as a symbol of high net worth and dainty feminine elegance.
Torun also created the Vivianna watch, a spoon-shaped ‘never-ending’ bangle with a mirrored dial and simple hands but devoid of numerals. Originally commissioned for an exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, she said her decision to leave out the hour markers suggested a kind of non-time, so that each time the wearer looked at the dial, the message that ‘life is now’ would be reflected back.
Her work remains an important part of Georg Jensen’s design heritage: ‘The sculptural power and unique lines of the pieces are timeless, and there is a spirit of artistry and craftsmanship, of making jewellery by hand,’ says Nicholas Manville, Georg Jensen’s senior vice president of design. ‘The relationship was mutually supportive and allowed for a level of experimentation that did not always produce commercial designs, but important, innovative ones.’
For the anniversary, Georg Jensen has reworked the Dew Drop neck-ring from a 1955 collection that Torun designed in Paris, after she had graduated from Stockholm’s Academy of Industrial Arts. Reworked in yellow gold, it links with a droplet-like pendant of rock crystal, black onyx and quartz, shot through with needle-like shards of golden rutile.
Left, 18ct yellow gold Dew Drop pendant, with rock crystal, black onyx, quartz and golden rutile. Right, 18ct yellow gold Forget-Me-Knot bangle
Left, Vivianna Bangle Watch with mirror dial. Right, Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe in her workshop
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Georg Jensen website (opens in new tab)
-
Lucas Ossendrijver continues his fashion return with Theory collection inspired by New Yorkers
Lucas Ossendrijver looks to the brand’s home city of New York for his second ‘Theory Project’ collection (released 31 March 2023) melding function and elegance in his signature style
By Jack Moss • Published
-
Bosco Sodi’s monumental new Mexico City studio is a multifunctional feat
As Bosco Sodi unveils his new Studio CMDX in Atlampa, Mexico City, we speak to the artist about how the vast Alberto Kalach-designed former warehouse is a feat in multitasking
By Juliana Piskorz • Published
-
Saltviga House is an architectural celebration of leftovers
Saltviga House by Kolman Boye Architects ingeniously uses offcuts from Dinesen planks to create a timber retreat on the south coast of Norway
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
Jewellery designers share their most precious personal pieces
A host of jewellers have given us a peek at the jewellery which has brought them solace this year
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Eternity rings for the modern couple
Eternity rings, whether sleekly minimalist or sprinkled in diamonds, can be a chic and contemporary love token
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Playing it cool: pearls are having a moment
We've been deep-diving into boutiques around the world to find the very best calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form. It seems jewellers have been busy rethinking pearls, with contemporary (and often affordable) results
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Alternative engagement rings with an edge
As the sales of engagement rings sky-rocket during lockdown, enjoy our off-kilter curation of edgy and unconventional engagement rings
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Hair jewellery to covet and collect
Today’s hair jewellery is both practical and pretty. We're pinning our hopes on these simple and elegant accessories
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Silver jewellery takes on sensual forms in the Georg Jensen Arc collection
Georg Jensen creative director Ragnar Hjartarson rethinks sculptural shapes in the new Arc pieces
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
CryptoPunks come to life on Tiffany & Co pendants
Tiffany & Co has partnered with blockchain infrastructure company Chain to create custom pendants and NFTiffs
By Hannah Silver • Last updated
-
Andreas Kronthaler’s costume jewellery for Vivienne Westwood is fun, flirty and fabulous
Andreas Kronthaler’s new jewellery draws on romantic and theatrical motifs
By Hannah Silver • Last updated