Esther Helén Slagsvold (b. 1961)

Esther Helén Slagsvold belongs to a new generation of Norwegian jewelry artists working from their own studios.

In the 1980s she received awards in design competitions held by the David-Andersen company in Oslo, Norway, and in 1986 she designed an extensive series of jewelry for the company. The series was called ‘Yre Dyr’ wich translates to something like ‘Giddy Animals’, and consisted of stylized animal brooches in sterling silver, whimsical wild animals like reindeer and hares, and farm animals with an expression of spring release.

Although the series was a great success the cooperation was not continued. 1994-97 she designed as a freelancer for the Norwegian jewelry company Holte A/S, and she has also designed the collection ‘Gold in fashion’ for Lars Harsheim A/S, another jewelry producer.

After her education at Goldschmiedeschule in Pforzheim, Germany, 1981-82, and National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in Oslo 1983-87, with a graduation as a goldsmith, she majored in body jewelry, and is today an established jewelry artist working from her own studio. The jewelry of Esther Helén Slagsvold combines boldly functional forms with artistic playful statements such as the brooch ‘Eye contact’ made of sterling silver and an eye prothese.

She has exhibited extensively in Norway and also in cities like Helsinki, Munich, Gothenburg, different places in the Netherlands, and several times in Paris. She has received awards in several design competitions such as the De Beer’s Diamond-International-Awards and De Beer’s Nordic Design Competition.

In 2001 Esther Helén Slagsvold was comissioned to design the wedding rings for Their Royal Highnesses the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess of Norway.