Born near Paris in 1927, Jean Dinh Van wanted to be a sailor. Fortunately for women, he decided, under his father's influence, to create jewelry. After studying at the Beaux-arts in Paris, he learned the trade of artisan jeweler at Cartier, and began a love affair with metal. This experience gave him a very personal vision of luxury and beauty.

In the mid-60s, tired of fashioning flowers and panthers for socialites and aristocrats, he wanted to bring jewelry to the streets. He took an interest in his era, in everything that was new: ready-to-wear by Paco Rabanne and Pierre Cardin, furniture by Knoll, advertising by Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet. As part of a group of designers, he aspires to a more modern approach and wants to free jewelry from the constraints of preciosity. His ambition is to create jewelry for everyday wear for contemporary men and women.