Louise Nippierd

Biography

Louise Nippierd was born and raised in England and moved to Norway with her Norwegian journalist mother and English father in 1967. Her father was a Commander in the Royal Navy on a 3-year contract with NATO in Bærum. During her first two years in Norway, Nippierd attended St. George's British School in Bærum, while her three siblings continued on at different boarding schools in England. In 1969 the family decided to stay in Norway, and Nippierd started at Smestad Primary School in Oslo, where several members of the Norwegian Royal Family, including King Harald V and Crown Prince Haakon Magnus, have also been pupils.

Nippierd took a goldsmith course in 1990 at the Elvebakken videregående skole College, and in 1991 she enrolled at the Metal Department of the Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry (now Oslo National Academy of the Arts), where she gained a Master's Degree in 1996. Also in 1996, she founded the studio community NB 13, which she ran for 10 years and shared with other artist colleagues, including Andrew J. Barton. Between 1997 and 2005 Nippierd was a guest teacher at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts, teaching courses in anodizing aluminium.

Nippierd's works have been purchased by several institutions, including Norsk Kulturråd Arts Council Norway. and a commission for two small sculptures for the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Jewel of the Seas.

Artistic Outlook

Jewellery has traditionally been marketed purely in an aesthetic and decorative function, but Louise Nippierd also gives her jewellery an inherent ambiguity as the carrier of a deeper message. Her projects have a socio-political dimension, touching on issues such as racism, homosexuality, animal rights and eating disorders. She attributes her concern with the marginalized groups in society to her own marginalized childhood as an English-speaking child in Norway.

Artistic Materials

Nippierd first started working with aluminium in 1994 and was very quickly fascinated by all the possibilities this material has, due to its light weight and ability to be coloured by anodizing. She specialised in this medium in her Master's Degree work and has subsequently gained an international reputation for her large anodized aluminium body-sculptures. Nippierd's use of imitation fur as an artistic material serves to highlight her opposition to the cruelty of the fur trade and the use of animal fur in art and fashion.

Awards & Grants

Group exhibitions

1992: "Ring frei", International ring exhibition

1996: "Subjects 96" International jewellery art

2001–2003: "2. Nordic Jewellery Triennial", Touring exhibition

2002: Julekalender på Oslo S (Christmas Tree Advent Calendar in Oslo Central Station)

2004: "Nordic Cool: Hot Women Designers"

2004: "Vakre bord- Design i tiden" ("Beautiful Tables-Today's Design")

2004–2005: "Schmuck aus Norwegen"

2005: "Maker-Wearer-Viewer", International, Touring exhibition

2005–2006: "Conceptual Crafts: New Art from Norway", Touring exhibition, England

2005–2006: "Norwegian Contemporary Crafts", Touring exhibition, UK

2007: "SMUKT!" ("GORGEOUS!") Norwegian Jewellery from the 21st Century.

2008–2009: "Artitude – kroppsmykker"

2009: "Irreverent: Contemporary Nordic Craft Art"

2011: "Hodepryd og øyenslyst" ("Fancy Headgear and Delights for the Eye")

Themed Solo Exhibitions

1997: Master's Degree "New Talents" Exhibition "With sensuous signals shall the body be adorned" (Homosexuality)

1999: "Cross" (Eating disorders)

2001: "Incognito" (Islamic)

2002: "SeaSons" (Water)

2002–2004: "All different All equal" (Anti-racism)

2003: "Zoo" (Animal rights & anti-fur)

2007: "As time goes by" (Fashion & history)