Golden Ring of Honor 2011 for Otto Künzli, Munich

With the Golden Ring of Honor as a symbol of gratitude and public recognition, the Society for Goldsmiths’ Art shows its esteem for the artistic work of the goldsmith Prof. Otto Künzli in Munich.

Otto Kunzli, born 1948 in Zürich, is considered to be an important reformer and agent provocateur of the modern jewelry art that had its beginnings in Munich at the end of the 1960’s. As a professor at the Akademie der Bildende Künste in Munich since 1991, he has been providing a new form of jewelry conception – jewelry as a medium for the projection of messages. With his jewelry, Künzli sends a signal: through subtle comments criticizing society, the apparently beautiful piece of finery becomes an artistic statement. For many years, the goldsmith Künzli has been involved with analyzing the aesthetics of Japanese culture. For him, it is "a constant challenge and source of inspiration." (Ellen Maurer Zilioli) Otto Künzli has received numerous prizes and awards; most recently he was honored with the Grand Prix Design of Switzerland. His works are represented in the most important museums of the world and in numerous private collections.

The artist Tone Vigeland from Oslo, Norway, who was the recipient of the 2008 Ring of Honor, created the ring for Künzli in 18 carat gold with the artistic interpretation of the eagle (photo included).

The presentation of the ring took place in a ceremony at the Kurhaus Wilhelmsbad in Hanau. Laudatory remarks were made by Prof. Dr. Florian Hufnagl, Director of the Neue Sammlung at The International Design Museum in Munich.

Since 1933, the Ring of Honor has been presented to 39 internationally recognized and highly respected gold- and silversmiths, both domestic and foreign. Among the so-honored are: Hermann Jünger (D), Friedrich Becker (D), Bruno Martinazzi (I), Anton Cepka (Slovakia), Yasuki Hiramatsu (JAP), Michael Rowe (GB), and Peter Skubic (A).

The circle of ring honorees vote for a new recipient every three years; the last recipient creates the Ring of Honor for his successor.

To celebrate the presentation of the Ring of Honor, rings from the "Hana-bi" series created by Otto Künzli between 2008 and 2011 in bichotan – an especially hard charcoal from Japan – will be shown in the German Goldsmiths’ House from May 27th through June 9, 2011.

Further information:
Gesellschaft für Goldschmiedekunst e.V. Tel. (+49)6181-256556, Fax (+49)6181-256554
c.weber-stoeber(at)gfg-hanau.de