New Sotheby’s Exhibition Features (Insane) Floral Jewelry Designs
Earlier this month, Sotheby’s launched a weeks-long exhibition sale celebrating the history and evolution of the flower motif in jewelry design, from the 19th century to the present day. Important vintage works from Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Verdura, and Belperron are represented, but what makes this offering unique is the inclusion of pieces by contemporary designers such as Alice Cicolini,Solange Azagury-Partridge, Neha Dani, Emmanuel Tarpin, Fernando Jorge, Cindy Chao, Shaun Leane, and Irene Neuwirth.
Called In Bloom, the sale comprises 75 pieces, and almost as many floral inspirations, from hollyhocks and hyacinths to orchids and gardenias. The pieces have been commissioned and curated in partnership with Carol Woolton, the celebrated historian, author, and contributing director of jewelry at British Vogue.
In Bloom will be open to the public in Sotheby’s newly expanded and reimagined galleries in New York City through May 24.
You can think of the edit below as a token nosegay plucked from a much larger garden of breathtaking jeweled blossoms. We’ll take one of everything, thanks.
Summer Snow ring with carved chrysoprase, tourmaline, rhodochrosite, and carnelian, accented with round tsavorite garnets, orange and pink sapphires, and a cabochon pink tourmaline, $5,600; Alice CicoliniOrchid earrings with fancy vivid green diamond and diamond centers, enamel petals, and detachable tsavorite and diamond-thorn stems, $1,100,000; Shaun Leane Circa 1920s antique watch/brooch with cabochon rubies, calibré-cut emeralds and diamonds, with black enamel detailing and an oval-shape dial with Arabic numerals on the reverse, and a crown set with a carved ruby bead, $90,000; Tiffany & Co.Rose ring with matte and polished gold petals, a center of round yellow sapphires and diamonds, and a stem mounted in patinated bronze, $29,000; Emmanuel TarpinFlower bud earrings with carved chalcedony, turquoise, and green, yellow, and pink opal, studded with pink opal and turquoise boules and seed pearls, accented with round diamonds, $32,020; Irene NeuwirthWindsor Flower brooch with cabochon rainbow moonstones, articulated carved rock crystals, and diamonds, $62,000; Suzanne BelperronHollyhock hinged necklace with triangular-cut rubellite and pavé tsavorite garnets, pink and yellow sapphires, and two pear-shape emeralds, $62,000; Wendy YueHyacinth gold cuff bracelet with cabochon sapphires, star sapphires, and purple sapphires, interspersed with round diamonds, $245,000; VerduraCirca 1960s rose brooch with pavé diamonds and gold stem accented with a pear-shape diamond, $48,000; David WebbCirca 1960s floral bracelet with clusters of round emeralds and sapphires, diamonds, and gold rope twist detailing, $186,000, Van Cleef & ArpelsCirca 1965 Camellia ear clips oval-shape and round sapphires and round diamonds, $96,000; Van Cleef & ArpelsDiamond and tsavorite Rose earrings, $65,000; Cindy Chao The Art Jewel Circa 1940s Chrysanthemum brooch with square-cut citrine center, round and pear-shape citrine petals, and gold, $30,000; Cartier LondonEnchanted Orchid cuff/ring/brooch with round pink, purple, and green sapphires, demantoid garnets, white and yellow diamonds, and a cascade of briolette diamonds, $255,000; Anna Hu
Top: Floral brooch with rubies, pink sapphires, white and yellow diamonds, and a button-shape pearl, $275,000; Moussaieff
