Nature-inspired jewellery, GemGenève and Bibi on our tables
The Honesty Box May 2024: straightforward jewellery insight
With Spring in full bloom despite the rain, we’ve put together an edit of our favourite nature-inspired jewels, spotlighting the breadth of creativity jewellery artists bring to bear in capturing the eternal muse. We’ve also been in Geneva for GemGenève, where we took in spectacular jewels both vintage and contemporary, and in Paris taking a closer look at the work of Sarah Madeleine Bru, whose silver shell earring is our Piece of the Month. With Bibi van der Velden’s new tableware line, Elisabetta Cipriani’s showcase for Italian artist Giorgio Vigna and a closer look at Cara Delevingne’s diamond hood on the Met Gala red carpet, we have your weekend morning reading covered.
The Nature Edit
Botanical Marquetry Leaf earrings by Silvia Furmanovich
Nature is the ultimate muse for the Brazilian designer, whose world is populated with gem-studded wooden mushrooms and golden blossoms. Here, she has harnessed the art of marquetry to recreate delicate markings on leaves in the teeming jungles of her home country, finished with tourmalines and diamonds.
Interlaced Green Tourmaline Ring by Evangeline Porché
With a deep green tourmaline flanked with intricately carved blooms, Evangeline Porche’s gold solitaire is one of the stars of this year’s LOVEring show, at Tomfoolery jewellery gallery in London. The annual exhibition highlights the best of independent jewellery design in alternative commitment, wedding and engagement rings, categories in which the gallery has seen a resurgence of “bolder, signet-inspired styles”.
LOVEring is at Tomfoolery London, in Muswell Hill, until June 22nd.
Double Diamond Catkin drops by Christopher Thompson-Royds
Christopher Thompson-Royds’ work sits in the borderlands between art and adornment, as he captures the life in of our hedgerows and gardens, cutting and carving flora and fauna from fine gold, which is sometimes delicately enameled and often subtly accented with stones. Each piece is presented as a work of art, and these gracefully articulated catkin earrings can be mounted on their own gold branch stand, ready to be displayed both on the body and off.
Birdsong necklace by Sia Taylor
Sia Taylor is well-known for her delicate strings of metal dots and lozenges, evoking sunsets, seeds and all the fecundity of the countryside around her Somerset studio. This necklace is different; the tiny plumes hand-cut from varying shades of gold alloy capture the birdsong itself, and the way it makes us feel, inspired by the designer’s own joy during country walks.
Trade Wind earrings by Iaia Caravan
US-based jewellery designer Arianna Calabrese’s work sites at the crossroads of culture, responsibility and art, a reflection of her day job as an arts educator and sustainability consultant. The first earrings she ever designed were the Trade Wind earrings using discarded mother of pearl, and the magnificent new nephrite jade iteration carries the ocean breeze in a wholly new way.
Bibi van der Velden is Taking Over Our Tables
The Dutch sculptor and jewellery artist has turned her attention to tableware, with Eating from Art, an exquisite new collection of artist-made ceramics that are ideal for Spring lunches. Created in collaboration with ceramist Anouk Kramer, the line of crockery, vases and vessels elevates the everyday with Bibi’s trademark humour and verve.
Ants march across the delicate scoop of tulip leaves draped over a bowl, in a beautifully crafted piece that celebrates the act of coming together around the table. "I wanted to create a ceramics collection that seamlessly marries functionality with aesthetic beauty, enriching the everyday dining experience with a touch of whimsy and artistry," explains the artist, who loves to gather friends and family around her own table at home in Portugal. Each piece is handmade by Kramer in her countryside studio in the Netherlands, bringing pastoral inspiration and artisan craftsmanship together, for long summer lunches in the garden. Just add sunshine and friends.
Hand-crafted and hand-painted in the Netherlands, Eating from Art is priced from €60. All pieces are made to order in 6-8 weeks.
Piece of the Month: La Coquille Pearl Earring by Sarah Madeleine Bru
Sarah Madeline Bru was in Paris recently, with her first fine jewellery collection under her own name. A veteran of furniture and ceramics design studios, her self-branded jewellery is a delight; gentle shapes and carefully placed diamonds in 18ct gold and platinum, for an organic effect executed with precision.
In the elongated chain links that stretch across the hand as rings, or twist from the lobe, scattered with a spray of diamonds, the L’Ecume (‘seafoam’) collection captures her exploration of the relationship between the body and form, with a certain tension between points and curves. The La Coquille earring bridges ornamentation and sculpture, enfolding the lobe and stretching gracefully upwards.
This French-born, London-based artist also sources stones from the British Isles, like Iona marble and Scottish agate, mounting them in silver and platinum as one-off pieces illustrating the singular creativity of nature itself.
International Jewellers Shine Bright at GemGenève
Earlier this month, we were in Geneva for GemGenève, one of our favourite gem and jewellery industry trade shows. With 244 exhibitors and over 3,500 visitors over four days, the biggest edition yet was a chance to meet gem dealers, designers, and vintage jewellery sellers, and take in the show exhibition, which this time was about that most magical stone of all, the opal.
As ever, the Designer Village, curated by Nadège Totah, brought together a strong edit of contemporary jewellery design. Asian designers were out in force, with colourful titanium and gem-heavy designs from Chong Ho and Aso Leon, while Strong & Precious, the Ukrainian jewellery showcase, presented a thoughtful curation of jewellery inspired by the Tripillia region, spotlighting the creativity of the Ukrainian people during wartime. New this edition, was a delegation of Armenian jewellers, and Masterpiece, a new category created to showcase a work of art or craft linked to the jewellery arts, this year, by Maison Lesage-trained embroiderer Alicia Stanska.
Despite ongoing volatility in the diamond market, trade in coloured stones is still brisk, according to the dealers behind the yards of glittering gems. Combined with the creativity of the designers on show, it made for a stimulating day of sparkle and skill.
The Inside Track on Stella McCartney x Vrai
Met Gala-watchers will have spotted Cara Delevingne’s diamond hood on the red carpet this first Monday in May; the product of a collaboration between Stella McCartney and lab-grown diamond (LGD) company, Vrai.
The custom-made backless hooded bodice was covered in 500 carats of Vrai diamonds and paired with a skirt made from recycled chiffon and silk, in an outfit described as the most sustainable look on this year’s Met Gala red carpet. According to Vrai CEO Mona Akhavi, no compromises were made in the development of the piece: “Stella was very hands-on throughout the process, from sketching out ideas in early meetings, to the final styling before Cara stepped out.”
Backed by Diamond Foundry, Vrai was one of the first LGD companies to emerge and grows diamonds in a certified zero-emissions founary in the US, boasting cleaner eco-credentials than other LGD producers. Meanwhile, Stella McCartney’s Summer 2024 collection is the house’s most sustainable thus far, with 95% conscious materials. With both labels known for their innovative sustainability-focused practices, their red carpet collaboration was a perfect fit.
Celebrating Giorgio Vigna’s Jewellery Art
Fresh from the Venice Biennale, Elisabetta Cipriani is preparing to open an exhibition of the work of Italian artist Giorgio Vigna, next week at her London gallery. The 50-piece solo show will mark 15 years of collaboration between the two, designed to tell the story of Giorgio Vigna’s four-decade career as an artist through early art works on paper, sculptures and more recently, wearable art.
“Body adornment and jewelry are an integral part of my artistic exploration, which I consider to be circular, developing through materials and dimensions that intertwine over time,” says Giorgio. “My encounter with Elisabetta Cipriani over 15 years ago, through the exhibitions we’ve held together and the editions created for her, has allowed me to deepen and continue my research on jewelry within my artistic journey.”
Elisabetta works with artists to produce wearable art and jewellery in a continuation of their creative practice. Her journey with Giorgio began in 2004 when she was gifted a glass necklace he had made and visited his studio in Milan: “I found myself surrounded by imaginary archaeological finds and seemingly living organisms emanating a great energy,” she recalls. When she opened her art jewellery gallery in 2009, he was the first artist she called. Crucially, he uses manual techniques and slow procedures “In 15 years, even with the most advanced technology, he would probably continue to use his hands,” she laughs. “I am sure he will continue to amaze us.”
Costellazioni runs May 29th - July 5th at Elisabetta Cipriani Gallery, 23, Heddon Street, first floor, W1B 4BQ, London
William Wood Watches Honours Dunkirk
British watchmaker William Wood has looked to history with its latest masterpiece, the Dunkirk. The new model pays tribute to Operation Dynamo in May 1940 which saved the lives of the 338,000 Allied troops who were ferried back to British soil across the Channel in vessels of all sizes. Hitler’s response was the Blitz, during which the London Fire Brigade and its fireboats played an instrumental role, including the Massey Shaw.
William Wood Watches are crafted from upcycled firefighter materials to create contemporary designer watches with meaningful features. For the Dunkirk, founder Jonny Garrett looked to the beaches of Northern France for a palette, with an aged bronze case, sandy beige ex-firegear strap and red case edging, while the distinctive face is inspired by the telegraphs inside the Massey Shaw fireboat. Inside each one, is a piece of a boat engine used in the evacuation, while on the back, is a hand-engraved scene of Dunkirk.
British designed and Swiss made, each watch sold Pre-orders for the watch open this weekend, for delivery in time for Remembrance Day and Veterans Day.
Up next month…
In June, we’re looking forward to Cockpit Arts Open Studios in London, for a closer look at the work of designers and artists like Malaika Carr, Mark Nuell, Jo Hayes Ward and Catherine Mannheim. The Bloomsbury Open Studios event is June 13th - 16th, and the Cockpit Arts Deptford will be open June 21st - 23rd… We’ll also be taking in the annual LOVEring exhibition at Tomfoolery London, for wedding and commitment rings from some of the brightest contemporary designers working in the UK… Over in Paris, Guerlain will be presenting the Or Norme exhibition at its Champs-Elysées flagship June 6th - September 12th, as part of the Cultural Olympiad. In honour of both Paris 2024 and the Maison’s iconic Abeilles bottle, first created in 1853, the beauty house is celebrating gold through the work of 16 artists including Yves Klein, Martin Parr and Pierre et Gilles.
We’re holding out for a Flaming June next month so we can share the jewels burning brightest, as well as a look at the rise of curated pre-loved jewels with input from sustainable stylist Bay Garnet and, in honour of Fathers’ Day, a very special father-son duo in the jewellery world. We’ll see you — and the sunshine ☀️ — in a few weeks.