Discover our new publication, The Wolfers Collection. The story behind the masterpieces. Richly illustrated, this publication takes a new look at the collection of works made by Wolfers Frères, the jewellery company managed by the Wolfers family between 1850 and 1975, and at the period in which these masterpieces were created.

The King Baudouin Foundation’s Wolfers Collection comprises over 150 masterpieces and numerous archives of Philippe Wolfers and his son, Marcel, the leading lights of the Wolfers Frères jewellery business. It is now acknowledged to be one of the most important collections of work by Philippe Wolfers, a leading and internationally-recognised figure of Belgian Art Nouveau, as well as a pioneer of Belgian Art Deco.

The masterpieces, archives, documents and photos in the collection are a formidable testimony to this important period in Belgium which helped put Brussels on the international stage. The Wolfers Frères jewellery business was able to combine the artistic and technological avant-garde while also meeting the expectations of a changing society.

Thanks to various patrons and philanthropists, the King Baudouin Foundation has been able to acquire and enrich the collection and to make it accessible to everyone at the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels. Here, the archives are meticulously preserved and the jewellery, sculptures and other objects are on show in the unique setting of the original interior of the Wolfers boutique.

Lavishly illustrated, this publication sheds light on the Wolfers Collection, as well as on the rise, development and decline of the Wolfers family jewellery business between 1850 and 1975. Werner Adriaenssens, Curator of 20th Century Collections at the Royal Museums of Art and History, and Professor of Decorative Arts at the VUB, leads us through a fascinating story. The focus is, naturally, on Philippe Wolfers. Some of the emblematic pieces of jewellery he created and the particular themes he used for his creations, as well as archival documents, are detailed in boxes.