Alma Pihl
Alma was born in Moscow the daughter of Knut Oscar Pihl who was the Head of the Fabergé workshop in Moscow. She was the granddaughter of August Holmström, Fabergé’s leading jeweler. Following the death of her father Alma’s mother moved the family to St. Petersburg where she grew up with her grandparents. Alma studied drawing and learned with Eugen Jakobson (1877-1940) an artist for Fabergé. He taught her pattern-drafting and became an apprentice to her grandfather Albert Holmström in the Faberge workshops. Shee started by documenting the items being produced in the workshop and rendering a life-size detailed drawing of each item, she documented the gemstones and other materials used, and noted the cost of each. She began to design her own sketches in her free time which Albert grew to like and decided he would have the workshop produce her designs alongside his own. She became Fabergé’s first woman designer. Dr. Emanuel Nobel of the Nobel oil empire, requested a group of 40 brooches for gifts to his clients and guests but wanted them to be “insignificant” in materials so they would not be viewed as bribery. Alma sat by the window of the workshop and drafted natural item sketches such as leaves which, after production, became a big hit for the client. Her skills in designing and importance at Faberge grew. She was asked to design the jewel gifts for the 300th anniversary of the Romanov Dynasty in 1913. The emperor ordered these jewels. Then she was tasked with creating the winter themed Easter egg was was to be presented to Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna which she executed with what is believed to be the most expensive Faberge egg! In 1914 she was asked to design another Easter egg, this one for Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II. The revolution ripped through Russia and Faberge was forced to close his workshop. She and her husband attempted to flee however were caught and her husband was sent to prison until 1921 which is wen they were able to secure him a passport and move to Finland. Her Husband, Nikolai began work again for the Kymi company in Kuusankoski and they hired Alma to teach drawing in the factories school. She worked at Kymi for twenty-four years until her retirement in 1951.
