The Selvatico Institute, founded by Pietro Selvatico, has had an enormous impact, both on the contemporary jewelry scene in Padova but also in Italy and internationally. The curator Mirella Cisotto who is also one of the driving forces behind Pensieri Preziozi wanted to present different generations of professors and alumni from HDK-Valand with the aim to give a picture of Gothenburg’s jewelry art culture. Together with 6 other Swedish artists, I was invited to the exhibition “Essenzialità, Minimalismo e Natura” which had its opening at the Oratorio di San Rocco in Italy on November 7th, 2025.

The exhibition was the 20th edition of Pensieri preziosi and was organized by the Department for cultural affairs in Padova. Me and the other artists came to Padova two days before the opening to set up the exhibition. Each of us showed about 20 pieces of jewelry and the works were presented in simple glass cases placed on the floor of the beautiful 16th century building. The presentation was framed by the murals that covered the walls and became a nice contrast to our pieces. During the opening, the curator and the writers, who wrote the texts in the exhibition catalog, gave long speeches where our artistry was analyzed and interpreted in detail. Wonderful and a bit overwhelming to get that attention. 

Together with Hanna Liljenberg, I had also been invited to give a lecture at the Selvatico Institute and the day after the opening we got to meet a group of students with a lot of engagement and many questions. We also got the opportunity to see the school and some of the students’ work.

The rest of the day was spent with the art historian and curator Nichka Marobin. She offered us an incredibly generous guided tour through the city. We got to see the museums and hear the stories behind the works, see rooms and buildings we had never found ourselves and I was incredibly moved by a huge wooden horse by Donatello. It was a sketch for a commission that apparently was never carried out, but it was a fantastic sculpture all the same. Together with Hanna Liljenberg, I had also been invited to give a lecture at the Selvatico Institute and the day after the opening we got to meet a group of students with a lot of engagement and many questions. We also got the opportunity to see the school and some of the students’ work. The rest of the day was spent with the art historian and curator Nichka Marobin. She offered us an incredibly generous guided tour through the city. We got to see the museums and hear the stories behind the works, see rooms and buildings we had never found ourselves and I was incredibly moved by a huge wooden horse by Donatello. It was a sketch for a commission that apparently was never carried out, but it was a fantastic sculpture all the same. 

In March 2026 we returned to take down the exhibition. The date happened to be just two days before Schmuck, the world’s largest jewelry art event. Therefore I decided to take the train to Munich from Padova. As usual, Munich was filled to the brim with exhibitions, presentations and other jewelry events. Among other things, I got to see a lecture with the artist Paul Derez, who has run Galerie Ra in Amsterdam for many years, and with the Danish artist and curator Mette Saebye, participate in an artist talk with Peter Bauhuis and see a large number of exhibitions.


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