Linn Sigrid Bratland is a Norwegian silversmith from the highlands of Telemark.
Her background in folk-art and folklore is fundamental to her designs, as she freely interprets these traditional forms, materials, themes and techniques.
Natural forms are also a recurring theme, often stylized and simplified, in silver and enamel.
“Whit this line of jewelry I won the Norwegian design award of the year, which the goldsmith association hands out every second year.
This time i have made the jewelry without the enamel that i presented at you exhibition in Milan in February, and it seems to get quite a different expression.
The Masquerade collection has many layers of meaning for me, and its origins came from my fascination for history and for people. Since I was a child I have had the tendency to get lost in old portraits, and I create my own stories about the people portrayed based on their expressions and posture. The old Norwegian tradition of decorating houses, instruments, sleds, and costume silver with faces has also fascinated me for quite some time.
My aunt owns a belt buckle that is over 200 years old. It is made in a fashion that we call “Glibbesølv”, which loosely translates to “Mask Silver”. This particular style tended to have a very human like appearance. There are many of theories around the source of this style and its traditional roots, but nobody can argue its timeless and universal appeal.
This is the reason that I decided to pursue a similar style based upon the same techniques and materials, while keeping it simplistic, free from “accessories”.
The fact that we as individual people all have a unique perception of things like a human face inspired me to create these masks in an ambiguous style. This allows for individual creativity and fantasy to stem from them, and for new stories to be created.
The mask from the old belt buckle I took inspiration from was made in a chased style, and I wanted to continue this style in order to deliver the plastic feel that the chasing technique allows for. It gives the faces a unique, and slightly veiled appearance.
Eventually, as the collection started to take shape I realized that it would be something that would work just as well for men as for women. Therefore it became a unisex line of jewelry.”
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