Puffed Up Vase 1&2 thumbnail 1
Puffed Up Vase 1&2 thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Silver, Room 68, The Whiteley Galleries

Puffed Up Vase 1&2

Flask
2016 (designed and made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Kim Buck (b.1957) is one of Denmark’s most distinguished goldsmiths and jewellers. In 1978, at the age of 21, he was apprenticed to Gilbert Pretzmann in Århus, finishing there in 1982. From 1982 until the following year he worked in the studio of Max Pollinger in Munich where he worked alongside Germany’s most distinguished silversmith, Rudolf Bott. From 1983 to 1985 he took the advanced course at Copenhagen’s Institute of Precious Metals where he graduated with honours after which he joined the workshop of the established designer and silversmith. Allan Scharf. Since 1990, he has had his own workshop and gallery at Råhusstraede, 10, Copenhagen. Since 1999, he has been a consultant designer to Georg Jensen.

Kim Buck’s work straddles the categories of goldsmith and jeweller, as a craftsman and designer achieving a balance between form and function, simplicity and refinement. This has led to a number of prestigious academic appointments such as Associate Professor of Jewellery Design at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden (1999-2001) and Visiting Professor at the Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm (2004).

Throughout his career, he has questioned traditional ways of making objects and understanding them. His work as a goldsmith demonstrates his consummate skill as a craftsman; his jewellery his flair for innovative design using an eclectic mix of precious and non-precious materials. His constant quest for breaking new ground has earned him a string of national and international, prizes and awards and he is represented in collections across Scandinavia and Europe, including the Danish Museum of Art and Design, Copenhagen, the Danish Arts Foundation, the Copenhagen Goldsmiths’ Guild, the Museum at Koldinghus Castle, Denmark, the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Oslo, the Röhsska Museum , Gothenburg, Sweden, the Gesellschaft für Goldschmiedekunst, Hanau and the Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums.

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Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePuffed Up Vase 1&2 (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Silver, raised and soldered
Brief description
One of a pair of flasks, Puffed Up Vase 1&2, silver, Denmark, Copenhagen, 2016, designed and made by Kim Buck.
Physical description
Puffed Up Vase, silver rising from a pentagonal base, the five side panels, given a matt finish, billow outwards and return to form a narrow neck which flares outwards towards the top. The side panels are externally soldered and are dimpled at the seams. The top, slightly domed with a pierced hole in the centre.
Dimensions
  • Height: 16.7cm
  • Width: 9.8cm
  • Depth: 9.6cm
Style
Production typeUnique
Marks and inscriptions
No marks
Gallery label
Puffed Up Vase 1 & 2 Silver Kim Buck Copenhagen, Denmark, 2016 Purchased with assistance from the James Yorke-Radleigh Bequest Fund Museum no. M.4 & 5-2018 Kim Buck is a Danish silversmith and jeweller who enjoys challenging the traditions of silversmithing. In Puffed Up Vase 1 & 2 the sides of the vessels billow outwards, and the puckered edges look like seams on fabric. Together these features combine to give the impression that the silver has been simply blown up like a balloon rather than meticulously worked by hand. (12.12.23)
Credit line
Purchased with assistance from the James Yorke-Radleigh Bequest Fund
Summary
Kim Buck (b.1957) is one of Denmark’s most distinguished goldsmiths and jewellers. In 1978, at the age of 21, he was apprenticed to Gilbert Pretzmann in Århus, finishing there in 1982. From 1982 until the following year he worked in the studio of Max Pollinger in Munich where he worked alongside Germany’s most distinguished silversmith, Rudolf Bott. From 1983 to 1985 he took the advanced course at Copenhagen’s Institute of Precious Metals where he graduated with honours after which he joined the workshop of the established designer and silversmith. Allan Scharf. Since 1990, he has had his own workshop and gallery at Råhusstraede, 10, Copenhagen. Since 1999, he has been a consultant designer to Georg Jensen.

Kim Buck’s work straddles the categories of goldsmith and jeweller, as a craftsman and designer achieving a balance between form and function, simplicity and refinement. This has led to a number of prestigious academic appointments such as Associate Professor of Jewellery Design at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden (1999-2001) and Visiting Professor at the Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm (2004).

Throughout his career, he has questioned traditional ways of making objects and understanding them. His work as a goldsmith demonstrates his consummate skill as a craftsman; his jewellery his flair for innovative design using an eclectic mix of precious and non-precious materials. His constant quest for breaking new ground has earned him a string of national and international, prizes and awards and he is represented in collections across Scandinavia and Europe, including the Danish Museum of Art and Design, Copenhagen, the Danish Arts Foundation, the Copenhagen Goldsmiths’ Guild, the Museum at Koldinghus Castle, Denmark, the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Oslo, the Röhsska Museum , Gothenburg, Sweden, the Gesellschaft für Goldschmiedekunst, Hanau and the Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums.
Associated object
M.4-2018 (Pair)
Collection
Accession number
M.5-2018

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Record createdApril 17, 2018
Record URL
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