IBE DAHLQUIST (1924 - 1996)

Inga-Britt (Ibe) Dahlquist, born in Gotland, Sweden, in 1924, is considered one of Sweden’s most prominent contemporary jewelry designers. Dahlquist studied at the Swedish School of Arts, Crafts, and Design in Stockholm, then started her silver workshop in the Gotland town of Visby with Olof Barve. They collaborated for almost thirty years, with Dahlquist doing the designing and Barve fabricating them. In 1959, the important exhibition Contemporary Jewelry organized by the National Museum of Sweden, showed their series set in silver with fossils and rocks picked on Gotland beaches.

Early designs by Dahlquist often reflect both organic and geometric qualities, illustrating nature as an inspiration and incorporating unworked materials. From 1965, Dahlquist was an employee of George Jensen, where she created more austere modernist jewelry, yet rhythmic patterns and repeated elements remained present in her designs.

She has had exhibitions in Sweden and elsewhere, and her work is displayed in Goldsmiths’ Hall, London, and many Swedish museums.

Visit our exhibition page for “MEDITATIONS ON MODERNISM: Thirty Years of Jewelry Design by Jacqueline Rabun, 1990–2022 and Selections from Notable Post-WWII Nordic Jewelry” to learn more about the innovative and exquisite Nordic jewelry in our collection.