Vintage Dior haute couture by Gianfranco Ferré, from the late 1990s

In Rome, history, style and a captivating jewellery collection come together in an engrossing new exhibition by home-grown global label Bulgari. Its brand and heritage curator Lucia Boscaini takes LUX on a personal tour

Jewels can tell many different stories: one is the glamorous story linked to their provenance, as is the case of the jewels that belonged to movie stars like Elizabeth Taylor or Anna Magnani.

Bulgari sautoir, 1969.

But we delved into their ‘behind the scenes’ stories too – for instance, Elizabeth Taylor often received jewels as gifts, namely from Richard Burton, but she was also a passionate collector from a young age thanks to her father who was an art dealer – she shared his discerning eye for beauty.

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Anna Magnani also bought jewels for herself, a self-indulgence that perhaps made up for a less-than-happy romantic life. Despite the humble characters she played on screen, she loved to buy and wear very elegant jewels as a life-affirming act. She had a child outside of marriage, which, in her era, would have been a difficult situation to face – both as a woman and as a celebrity. She had a difficult personal life and I think the jewels gave her some energy and ‘sparkle’.

Bulgari tremblant brooch in platinum with yellow and cognac-colour diamonds, 1959. Formerly in the Elizabeth Taylor Collection

As well as Bulgari jewels, the exhibition also features vintage haute couture from the collection of Cecilia
Matteucci Lavarini

“Giardinetto” brooch, 1960.

I believe that jewellery can be transformed by the personal style of the woman who wears it. When they are matched to a charismatic persona and style, all jewels undeniably take on a personality of their own.

Read more: Sassan Behnam-Bakhtiar on his upcoming exhibition ‘Extremis’

We’ve also designed the show to capture the way in which the jewellery reveals some of the social and fashion trends from different epochs. For example, the eclectic and sometimes fun sautoirs from the 1970s remind us that it was a decade of experimentation, with a drive to change in many social aspects. The same is true of the sumptuous chokers from the 1980s, with their compact shape that immediately recalls the teased hair, loud make-up and puffed shoulders of that period.

The exhibition also includes displays from a 1920s French haute couture atelier

Bulgari bracelet in platinum with rubies and diamonds, ca 1934.

Bulgari’s modular jewels from the 1980s also reference career women, the number of whom grew during those years, as they looked for affordable, stylish and distinctive jewels to be worn either in the office or at cocktails after working hours.

The exhibition, ‘Bulgari: The Story, The Dream’, is showing until 3 November in the Palazzo Venezia and Castel Sant’Angelo in Rome. Find out more: polomusealelazio; beniculturali.it

This article was originally published in the Autumn 19 Issue.

Installation shot of the ‘Autrement’ exhibition in Chaumet’s Paris boutique

Maison Chaumet’s latest exhibition Autrement reimagines selected jewels through drawings from its Parisian archives and a series of transformative photographs by Swedish photographer Julia Hetta

Showcasing heritage pieces alongside contemporary creations, Autrement offers an alternative take on how to wear Chaumet high jewellery through individually styled reinventions of each jewel.

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The Jeux de Liens sautoir necklace, for example, featuring the brand’s signature linking design set in rose gold with mother-of-pearl, becomes an intricate bandeau reminiscent of the iconic Chaumet tiaras. The same necklace is also photographed in a balletic pose, wrapped daintily around the leg to form an anklet.

Image by Julia Hetta

A peacock feather bodice ornament from 1870 with a dazzling sapphire encircled by rubies and diamonds is remodelled as a delicate hair-pin, whilst a crescent moon brooch fashioned with fine pearls is worn as an aigrette with deep blue plumes. In perhaps the most innovative remodelling, L’Épi de Blé de Chaumet brooch and earrings are used as a pair to bind a braided hairstyle in place.

Read more: In conversation with Belgian painter Luc Tuymans

The smallest yet most sophisticated transformation, however, is made using the L’Épi de Blé de Chaumet white gold cocktail ring as a scarf ring, highlighting the large tanzanite and its surrounding diamonds in a more prominent position.

Image by Julia Hetta

Drawing inspiration from styling details and poses depicted in Renaissance art, Julia Hetta’s photographs modernise the more traditional jewels whilst contributing to the historical dimensions of the exhibition from the 19th-20th century sketches to the 15th-19th century LeBrun frames.

Chloe Frost-Smith

‘Autrement’ runs until 2nd November 2019 at Chaumet 165 Boulevard Saint Germain, 75006 Paris. For more information visit: chaumet.com/en/autrement

Backstage image of a Chaumet tiara being fitted on a model

Tiaras are the cult jewel of maison Chaumet, and their latest exhibition ‘Chaumet in Majesty’ at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco offers a rare insight into the iconic jewel’s history

Since 1780 Chaumet has been the jeweller to sovereigns. This latest exhibition at Grimaldi Forum recounts the lives of the brand’s royal customers and delves into the history of the jewels themselves, highlighting tiaras as symbolic of timeless feminine power.

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Portrait of Edwina, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, last Vicereine of India, wearing her Chaumet tiara for George VI’s coronation. Photographie de Yevonde, 1937. © Madame Yevonde/Mary Evans Picture Library

As Chaumet demonstrates, a tiara is not just a decorative jewel, but one which has an important functionality, specifically designed to imbue its wearer with virtuous qualities and authority. For example, The Briar Rose Bud tiara (1922) features fauna motif referring back to the power and prestige of classical laurel wreaths whilst the material qualities of the pearls evoke wisdom and diamonds are traditionally associated with timeless elegance and strength. The Pearl and Mircomosaic Parer (1811) also projects an image of its imperial court. The tiara depicts scenes of Roman landscapes through mosaic techniques to lend the piece and its wearer an air of romanticism and grandeur.

‘Chaumet in Majesty’ exhibition at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco: displaying the tiara with florets of Edwina Countess Mountbatten of Burma, last Vice-Queen of India created by Marcel Chaumet (1886-1964) in 1934 in the workshop of Maison Chaumet. The tiara was entrusted to another Maison who sold it to Lady Edwina Mountbatten. Private collection

Read more: Why we love Cartier’s high jewellery collection ‘Magnitude’

The exhibition brings together 250 pieces of jewellery, some of which are being seen publicly for the first time, sourced from the collections of Prince Albert II of Monaco, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and museum collections from all over the world. In the exhibition we see the heritage of the maison’s forms and the quality and beauty of their pieces, but more importantly, we can begin to appreciate jewellery’s role in signifying women’s power throughout the ages.

‘Chaumet in Majesty’ runs until 28 August 2019 at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. For more information visit: chaumet.com 

Rosie Ellison-Balaam