Buccellati Exhibit Shows Its Floral Pins as Timeless and Contemporary

By Karen Dybis | March 03, 2025

Buccellati and the Saatchi Gallery have partnered on an exhibition of the high jewelry house’s hyperrealist bejeweled floral brooches, unveiling 2025 editions of the Magnolia brooch and highlighting three historical designs.

The “Flowers: Flora in Contemporary Art & Culture” exhibition at Saatchi, located in London on Kings Road in Chelsea, opened Feb. 12 and will run through May 5. It features more than 500 artworks and objects by various designers.

“The explicit reference to flowers and nature in our creations holds great value. It is symbol of rebirth and joy, variety, vitality, and harmony,” Maria Cristina Buccellati, global marketing director for the company founded by her grandfather, tells JCK in an email interview. “We have been designing floral creations since the beginning, and it was time to come back with something special that recalled our heritage.”

Daisy Brooch Mario Buccellati — *Designed by Mario Buccellati and handcrafted in the 1960s, the Daisy brooch in silver and yellow gold features baroque pearls and diamonds.*

Nature has always been a source of inspiration for Buccellati, with flowers, bouquets, and leaves showing up in collections from all of the Buccellati family’s major designers through the years—starting with company founder Mario, continuing with his son Gianmaria, and now with current designer Andrea (Gianmaria’s son), who has reinterpreted the brand’s Magnolia pieces for a new generation.

“The Magnolia brooch, originally debuted in the 1980s, perfectly testifies the timelessness of the maison’s designs and demonstrates how the beauty of objects created in the past can endure undiminished and fascinate all generations of an entire century and beyond,” says Maria Cristina, daughter of Gianmaria.

Showcasing Buccellati’s traditional goldsmithing techniques, the vintage pieces in the Saatchi exhibit are the 1929 Orchid brooch and the 1960s Daisy brooch, both handcrafted by Mario Buccellati, and Gianmaria’s 1991 Begonia brooch and matching earrings.

Andrea Buccellati’s new Magnolia flower brooches come in three gemstone variations: sapphire, emerald, and ruby. These jewels connect to the brand’s past through the use of segrinato engraving, which gives the petals a velvety soft texture, one of Buccellati’s signatures.

Orchid Brooch Buccellati — *Mario Buccellati’s 1929 Orchid brooch in silver and yellow gold with a fancy diamond, polychrome quartz, and diamonds*

If Maria Cristina had to pick a favorite Buccellati floral pin, she’d say the Begonia from the 1990s. “The translucent and nuance effect given by our engraving techniques to the gold surface is remarkable, transforming these flowers as they literally seem to be dipped in gold—an impressive work of goldsmithing art,” she says.

“I love how our brooches evolved over a century of timeless beauty,” says Maria Cristina. “They have always been very versatile, detachable, transformable into different jewels. And they really became an iconic statement piece of the Buccellati style.

“From the brooches designed by my grandfather Mario in the 1920s to 1930s with intricate openwork motifs in silver, yellow gold, and diamonds, to my father Gianmaria’s fascination with baroque pearls, every family member added their own personal touch to brooches,” she adds. “Our brooches are remarkable works of art, and I think people will admire the intense savoir faire that distinguishes our creations.”

Also on display in the Saatchi exhibition are Buccellati silverware and its iconic flower-shaped bowls, alongside paper flowers handcrafted by Venice-based artist Marta Tullio Nardi.

Top: Magnolia flower brooches ($17,000 each) designed by Andrea Buccellati for the 2025 Prestigio collection, in white and yellow gold with emeralds, rubies, and sapphires, are on display at the Saatchi Gallery in London. (Photos courtesy of Buccellati)