Sculptor and ceramic artist Zoltan Popovits joined the Lapponia team of designers in the mid-1970s. His first design for Lapponia was a silver chess set, with each piece a miniature sculpture. The roots of Popovits’ jewelry design reach back to the jewelry customs of indigenous peoples’ approach to wearing jewelry, where the wearer has a close bond with the jewelry. In his view, jewelry design is like solving a puzzle: the technical elements, materials, and ideas must be made to match. They must form a harmonious entity. Today, the jewelry designed by Zoltan Popovits for Lapponia are included in the Art by Kalevala collection.