When an artist decides to devote himself or herself to the art of jewellery making, will he or she be making utilitarian objects or autonomous art works? Will the results merely testify to their skills and technical knowledge, or more to the artistic rendering? The options are as different as the four points on a compass. With one artist, the wind will blow from one direction for another from the opposite. Ralph Bakker balances himself as an equilibrist (a tightrope walker) in the heart of the wind rose.

Bakker’s jewellery stands firm in a classic tradition and is proof of his considerable technical abilities,yet his very personal artistic language stems from a different source. The intensive vocational training at Schoonhoven combined with the artistic ambitions of the Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, brought out the best in Ralph Bakker. For twenty years, he has maintained his own position in the Dutch jewellery world, without imitators or competitors. Many admire his subtle colours and ingenious connecting techniques, but above all, they admire the magic he works with gold, silver and enamel.