Swiss Scandinavian haute joaillerie
The Swiss Scandinavian fine jewellery brand TOWE was founded in 1999 by Swedish contemporary high-end Jeweller, GIA gemmologist and Master of Fine Arts Towe Norlen.
Before creating her own brand, Towe Norlen worked in Geneva, Switzerland, for a number of fine jewellers such as Harry Winston and Piaget, as well as for Sotheby’s.
Towe Norlen’s design is inspired by the magic of how nature has designed the living world. In cooperation with her husband, Professor of Dermatology at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Towe Norlen has spent years researching the underlying principles behind nature’s living design. As an example, the ’Silk’-pattern, recognised in several of Towe Norlen’s jewellery pieces, actually reflects the micro-shape of human skin.
All gem-set TOWE objects are handicrafted in one of the world’s finest jewellery workshops in Geneva, being one of the few true ‘haute joaillerie’ workshops existing in the world. Haute joaillerie denotes the most exclusive jewellery design- and craftsmanship tradition. The production of a haute joaillerie item often requires hundreds of hours and involves a number of highly specialised craftsmen. Today, haute joaillerie is only mastered in a few specialised workshops in Geneva and Paris.
Towe Norlen has also innovated high-end jewellery manufacturing. In fact, she invented, and patented in 2003, the new jewellery production technique ‘gold laser-sintering’ that is increasingly used in top-end jewellery manufacturing.
