Editor’s Note
**Editor’s Note:** This piece explores Miu Miu’s Fall/Winter 2022 collaboration with artists Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg, drawing inspiration from their 2015 sculpture series. The resulting collection balances innocence with provocation, as playful jewelry motifs—birds stealing colorful pills and small animals—add a mischievous edge to the designs.
For its Fall/Winter 2022 collection, Miu Miu collaborated with artists Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg on a colorful collection inspired by their 2015 sculpture series titled “A Thief Caught in the Act.” As a result, the artists and the Italian house present pieces that at first glance seem innocent, but when worn, are provocative and have a touch of mischief.
Like the sculptures, the jewelry features birds of different colors stealing equally colorful pills, while small animals on a table express, according to Djurberg and Berg, “the desire to escape with humor and sweetness.”
To give the collection a mystical yet comforting touch, Djurberg and Berg named it “A Remedy.” The pieces that make it up expand our perception of what fashion and accessories can represent, as the bright “pills” and naive animal forms challenge the notion of precious jewelry in its most familiar form, but represent an intimate connection with the wearer and defend the concept of something very personal, made to be appreciated.
Both the animals and the pills are composed of hand-finished resin elements and hand-polished metal, galvanized in a nickel-free gold finish. Assembly and decoration are also done by hand. As if that weren’t enough, the pieces are presented in equally striking boxes with drawings of flora and fauna in bright tones. When opened, the interior plays music composed especially for the project by Hans Berg.
The collection is accompanied by a mysterious video that makes us wonder whether the birds are giving the jewelry to Isadora Bjarkardóttir Barney, the campaign star, or taking them away.
Following is an exclusive Q&A with the masterminds behind the collection.
The idea came from a series of sculptures called ‘A Thief Caught in the Act,’ which is about the desire to escape, and seeing that escape with humor and gentleness. In the works, you can notice scandalous birds stealing equally colorful pills and small animals from a table; you don’t know if the birds are taking them because they recognize themselves or if they look that way because they’ve already eaten the pills. This jewelry comes out of those works of art and changes meaning the moment people wear it. People become participants when they wear it, just as the birds did. We wanted to be fully involved.
They gave us absolute freedom to do whatever we wanted. That, combined with the experience and expertise of the designers, translated into a very fun process, sharing different ideas and seeing how they materialized. I think both of us were given something new; we hadn’t worked in jewelry before, so in that sense we fully trusted Miu Miu; we are sure their creation process is nothing like this collaboration.
It’s good to work in other ways to soften the established paths your brain has taken, and for us this was an opportunity to play and take on something very new. Collaborating with other people, and within an established framework, we are not as free as when we work alone, but there is also a challenge in working with limitations; it makes you think differently and new and unexpected things appear.
We both love fashion, although Hans is better at it, as I end up destroying all my clothes in the studio (Nathalie). Fashion is an escape, as well as an expression of creativity and art of how we perceive ourselves.
We have done it for years and across all cultures. It is a way to celebrate our body and sometimes to hide it. Life is so complex, we are like birds of paradise.
Yes, absolutely. Besides having a high symbolic (or monetary) value established by society, on a personal level we can give a lot of meaning to jewelry, as it is very precious to us, it is like something magical.
