| Following
its successful debut at The American Folk Art Museum in New York in 2004, this inaugural
exhibition of the National Jewelry Institute is the first museum exhibition ever to focus
exclusively on America's jewellery heritage. The 200 pieces range in date from the late
18th century to the 1990s and were all designed, manufactured and distributed in the
United States. The exhibition celebrates the creativity, craftsmanship and excellence of
design found in American jewellery. The show explores five major themes: Americana,
Nature, Humour, Pastimes and High Style. The works on view are not only by American
jewellers such as Tiffany and Harry Winston but also by famous European makers who worked
in America, including Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Bulgari. From Walt Disney charm
bracelets made by Cartier to Jackie Kennedy Onassis' gold cuffs made by Van Cleef &
Arpels and a necklace sculpted in brass by the American artist Alexander Calder, this
exhibition presents many surprises.
Don't miss out on this stroll
through opulent taste, fashion and culture of the twentieth century. You won't
necessarily like everything - some pieces are purely decorative! - but the exhibition is
entertaining and the jewelry fabulous.
___________________________________________
Masterpieces of
American Jewellery, the first museum exhibition to focus exclusively on America’s
jewellery heritage, are on display at the Gilbert Collection, Somerset House, London, until
12 June 2005. The 200 pieces on show range from the late 18th century
to the 1990s and were all designed, manufactured and distributed in the United States. The
inaugural exhibition of The National Jewelry Institute, it was first staged at The
American Folk Art Museum, New York.
Lily Flower Brooch
Marcus & Co., New York, 1930
Rubies, diamonds, gold and enamel, 8 x 5.5 cm
Masterpieces
of American Jewellery highlights the creativity, craftsmanship and excellence of
design found in American jewellery and explores five major themes: Americana, Nature,
Humour, Pastimes and High Style.
Americana is exemplified by a brooch set with diamonds,
sapphires and rubies depicting the American flag. Charles Tiffany, together with John
Young, formed a jewellery business in 1837 and the ‘star spangled banner’ in the
exhibition was made in New York in 1900 by Tiffany & Co., still a household name
today. It is exquisitely made, the flag rippling in the wind with diamond tassels flying
behind, while in 1927 the New York branch of Cartier made an elegant brooch with the flag
stylised into the form of a bow-tie.
A number of
pieces in the Americana section commemorate such great events as Wilbur Wright’s 1909
flight over New York, the 1939 New York World Fair and the suffragette movement.
America’s fascination with technology and its no-nonsense approach to life can be
seen in a pair of gold cufflinks designed in 1940 as nuts and bolts by Paul Flato, the
darling of the Hollywood and café society sets.
Nature. Inspired by exotic flora, American jewellers
gave free rein to their imagination and this theme remains popular today. In 1889 Tiffany
& Co. displayed 25 exceptional and botanically accurate diamond, enamel and gold
brooches by Paulding Farnham at the Paris World Fair. All were sold by the second day,
many to the railroad baron Jay Gould. Six of these breathtaking creations, each
representing a different variety of orchid, are on view. Marcus & Co. also created
remarkable pieces such as the brooch of enamel and yellow gold of two irises which appear
translucent when held up to the light, 1900, and an exquisite ruby, diamond, gold and
enamel lily flower brooch, 1930. The Duchess of Windsor reinforced this passion for nature
- when she wore a flower brooch, everyone wanted one.
Walrus Brooch
Donald Claflin, Tiffany & Co, New York, 1965
Platinum, enamel, 18-carat gold, diamonds, ivory. 7 x 4.5 cm
Humour. American jewellery design has always had a
witty streak. In the 1930s, Walt Disney went into partnership with Cartier to create a
series of enamelled charm bracelets representing some of his animated characters.
Another jeweller influenced by Disney was Raymond C. Yard. A group of his whimsical Bunny
Pins made from diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds will be exhibited, each depicting
a rabbit - fishing, dressed as a soldier, a waiter, as a bride, a yacht owner at his
boat’s wheel and pretending to ride. The bunny appears again with the Bunny Bangle
created by the artist Daniel Brush. Exhibited at the Smithsonian Institute in 1987, the
bangle is made of 1940s Bakelite and gold, surmounted by a rabbit’s head of pink
diamonds and ruby eyes. Donald Claflin of Tiffany looked to Lewis Carroll for inspiration
for his walrus brooch of 1965 made of platinum, enamel, gold, diamond and ivory.
Major artists
frequently design jewellery and an extraordinary example is the tiara and necklace made in
brass, commissioned from Alexander Calder in the 1950s by Sir Kenneth (later Lord) Clark
for his wife. The jewelled sculptures of a stallion and mare were commissioned by the
American heiress Barbara Hutton from the well-known animal sculptor Herbert Haseltine who
completed this three-year project in 1949 and drew his inspiration from India. The gold
horses’ heads and necks are carapaced with rubies, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds and
oriental pearls and stand 38.1 cm high on rock crystal bases.
Ballerina Brooch
Van Cleef & Arpels, New York, 1946
Sapphires, diamonds, platinum, 7.2 x 7 cm
Pastimes. Americans wanted jewellery that reflected
their leisure interests, whether they were sporting activities (fishing, sailing, racing
and hunting) or cultural (ballet). Claude Arpels’s friendship with the famous
choreographer George Balanchine led Van Cleef & Arpels to create a series of exquisite
jewelled, rose-cut diamond, platinum and gold ballerinas, inspired by the great dancer
Anna Pavlova.
High Style. High society
and Hollywood stars alike commissioned and wore stunning pieces of jewellery. Cole Porter
commissioned Paul Flato in 1940 to make a dazzling aquamarine and ruby belt buckle
necklace for his wife Linda while Joan Crawford favoured pieces by Raymond C. Yard such as
her elegant 1935 diamond and platinum bracelet. Major pieces by Tiffany, Marcus & Co.,
Cartier, Paul Flato, Van Cleef & Arpels and Harry Winston, dating from the turn of the
century to the 1990s, will be on show. Amongst the most extraordinary is a Crown of Thorns
brooch designed by Jean Schlumberger in 1947 for Millicent Rogers, the Standard Oil
heiress, in morganite, diamonds and gold, and the gold cuffs made by Van Cleef &
Arpels for Jackie Kennedy Onassis. The two most recent pieces in the exhibition are a
glittering blue butterfly of Montana sapphires, diamonds, silver and gold by Joel Arthur
Rosenthal (JAR), circa 1987, and a Tahitian aubergine-coloured pearl necklace with a
diamond and pearl clasp by Assael International from the 1990s.
|
|
Gilbert Collection Somerset
House
Strand, London WC2R 0RN
Dates: February 15 to 12
June 2005
Open daily, 10.00 am to 6.00 pm
Following its successful debut at
The American Folk Art Museum in New York in 2004, this inaugural exhibition of the
National Jewelry Institute is the first museum exhibition ever to focus exclusively on
America's jewellery heritage. The 200 pieces range in date from the late 18th century to
the 1990s and were all designed, manufactured and distributed in the United States. The
exhibition celebrates the creativity, craftsmanship and excellence of design found in
American jewellery. The show explores five major themes: Americana, Nature, Humour,
Pastimes and High Style. The works on view are not only by American jewellers such as
Tiffany and Harry Winston but also by famous European makers who worked in America,
including Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Bulgari. From Walt Disney charm bracelets
made by Cartier to Jackie Kennedy Onassis' gold cuffs made by Van Cleef & Arpels and a
necklace sculpted in brass by the American artist Alexander Calder, this exhibition
presents many surprises.
Admission:
Included in admission to
permanent collection: Adult: £5.00 Concessions: £4.00 Under 18s, UK full-time students,
unemployed, disabled helpers, and Friends of the Courtauld Institute of Art Gallery: free
Annual ticket: £20.00 Joint ticket with Hermitage Rooms or Courtauld Institute of Art
Gallery: £8.00 (concession £7.00) Joint ticket with both Hermitage Rooms and Courtauld
Institute of Art Gallery: £12.00 (concession £11.00)
Catalogue:
The lavishly illustrated
companion publication by Judith Price, President of the National Jewelry Institute, is
published by Running Press, ISBN 0-7624-2118-5 (hardback), price £20.00 ($29.95).
Related Events:
For information about educational
events
tel. +4420 7420 9406 or email education@somerset-house.org.uk
How to get there:
Entrances on Victoria Embankment
and Strand. British Rail mainline trains to Charing Cross, Waterloo or Blackfriars;
underground stations Embankment or Temple (District and Circle lines) (Temple closed
Sunday), Covent Garden (Piccadilly line) and Charing Cross (Northern, Bakerloo and Jubilee
lines); buses 6, 9, 11, 13, 15, 23, 77a, 91 and 176 to Strand.
Access:
Lifts at both entrances,
wheelchair access to galleries, café and shop.
Permanent collection:
The Gilbert Collection of
decorative arts, which opened to the public in May 2000, is one of the most important
gifts ever made to the British nation. It comprises some 800 works of art including
magnificent silver, gold snuffboxes and Italian mosaics collected over forty years by the
late Sir Arthur Gilbert. The stunning pieces are presented in a dazzling display in the
Embankment and South Buildings of Somerset House, the architectural masterpiece designed
by Sir William Chambers (1723-1796).
Shop:
The shop offers visitors the
opportunity to purchase fine and unusual gifts inspired by the magnificence of the Gilbert
Collection as well as the work of a number of contemporary jewellers and silversmiths.
Merchandise includes specialist books, fine art prints, stationery, glass, ceramics and
jewellery.
The Gilbert
Collection Shop offers a stunning selection of jewellery and other gifts inspired by both
the permanent collection and the exhibition Masterpieces of American Jewellery.
 Nut and Bolt Cufflinks
Silver
reproductions of a 1940 American classic designed by the darling of the Hollywood society
set Paul Flato. Known for his audacious and yet simple and bold jewels these are a must
have for any collector. Endorsed by the prestigious National Jewelry Institute, each of
the limited edition cufflinks is engraved with their initial (£200).
Diamonds and
Pearls…
Reminiscent of
the Tiffany pieces seen in the exhibition the store stocks opulent neckpieces of handcut
rubies (£450); the glamour of jewellery collectors like Jackie Kennedy Onassis is
reflected in a range of handcrafted designer silver jewellery evocative of the era
dripping with star quality (from £25 to £1,500); and elegant vintage style enamel
handbag mirrors inspired by the beautiful organic art nouveau pieces on display (from
£8).
and much more
|
by Simon
Mendes da Costa
image credit: Robert Day
copyright © Hergé/Moulinsart 2005 
Photo Empics 
, Battersea
