Want to see some exquisite jewelry? Then make for A Quest for Beauty: The Art of Van Cleef & Arpels at the Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA (October 27, 2013 through February 15, 2014).

The Bowers Museum has curated more than 200 iconic pieces made by the storied jewelry house. Jewelry is organized around four themes: Elegance, Exoticism, Femininity, and Nature. Expect to see remarkable craftsmanship, dazzling gemstones, and a parade of innovative and timeless works.

Van Cleef & Arpels Dragon clip, 1969. Image courtesy of Bowers Museum.

Dragons in the East symbolize power, luck, and strength, while the coral ball represents the pursuit of wisdom. This dragon clip from 1969 is a dramatic example of “Exoticism.”

Van Cleef & Arpels Spanish Dancer clip 1941. Image courtesy of Bowers Museum.

Dancers were one of Van Cleef & Arpels signature pieces, and became a popular symbol of hope during World War II. This Spanish dancer clip (circa 1941) shows the creative use of rubies and emeralds to create visual accents and a sense of depth; the dancer’s face is a single diamond.

Founded in 1906, Van Cleef and Arpels is one of the world’s most prestigious jewelry houses. It has designed crowns for royalty, jewelry for celebrities like Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Elizabeth Taylor, and popularized the Mystery Setting (no prongs visibly securing the gemstones).

Van Cleef & Arpels Mystery Set Pastilles clip. Image courtesy of Bowers Museum.

This Mystery Set Pastilles clip (circa 1951) is made of platinum, yellow gold, osmior, rubies, and diamonds. Notice that there are no prongs holdings the stones in place – a feat that required outstanding lapidary skills.

Van Cleef & Arpels Dragon Vanity Case, 1923. Image courtesy of Bowers Museum.

Vanity cases – a trendy alternative to handbags in the 1920s – were another popular object created by Van Cleef and Arpels. Each one had a unique surface decoration that “demonstrated a staggering mastery of jewelry techniques,” according to Van Cleef & Arpels by Sylvie Raulet.

Van Cleef & Arpels Zip necklace. Image courtesy of Bowers Museum.

Another iconic piece by Van Cleef and Arpels, this Zip necklace (circa 1955) can be zippered and turned into a bracelet – extraordinary difficult accomplishments when working with gold (which is a soft metal) and fine gemstones. The first piece was made at the request of the Duchess of Windsor.

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A treasure trove of jewels that lay hidden underground for nearly 300 years is now on display at the Museum of London.  Nearly a century after its discovery, the entire collection is being exhibited together for the first time. Workers demolishing a tenement house in the Cheapside district of London in 1912 discovered the priceless Elizabethan and Jacobean jewelry, loose gems and objects buried in a cellar. The treasure became known as “The Cheapside Hoard,” but the identity of its owner remains an enigma.

“The Cheapside Hoard tells a thrilling tale of mystery and discovery, with every jewel and gemstone unlocking a story,” said Sharon Ament, Museum of London Director. “It has a lot more to tell the world than simply the look and feel of the jewels themselves.”

The undisturbed, subterranean resting place kept most items from the Cheapside Hoard well-preserved, like this pomander, or scent bottle, that once hung from a chain. This golden jewel is set with carved chalcedony leaves, rubies, pink sapphires and diamonds, and decorated with white enamel.

Courtesy of the Museum of London; photo by Robert Weldon/GIA

This salamander brooch contains cabochon Colombian emeralds and table-cut diamonds from India. The origin of the gemstones in this iconic piece provides historical insight into the international gem trade during the late 1500s and early 1600s. The underside of the brooch depicts the sophisticated enameling skills as well as the complex curved pins designed to keep the jewel in place.

Courtesy of the Museum of London; photos by Robert Weldon/GIA

Due to its exquisite workmanship, this one-of-a-kind pocket watch in a massive, polished hexagonal Colombian emerald, was likely designed for nobility. Its gold dial with green enamel is visible through the hinged cover created from a thin slice of the emerald crystal.

Courtesy of the Museum of London; photos by Robert Weldon/GIA

We’ll be covering the exhibit in detail in an upcoming post, so be sure to subscribe to the feed for updates. In the meantime, for an expanded “behind-the-scenes” look at the Cheapside Hoard exhibition with exclusive video footage, visit GIA’s Fall 2013 issue of Gems & Gemology.

Main Image: A rose-cut sapphire and diamond cross pendant. Courtesy of the Museum of London; photos by Robert Weldon/GIA.

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World-renowned Parisian jeweler Joel A. Rosenthal will debut an exhibit titled Jewels by JAR at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York on November 20,2013 which runs through March 9, 2014. The retrospective of more than 300 pieces is the first collection at the Museum devoted to a contemporary jewelry artist.

Rosenthal, who works under the name JAR, is known for his sculptural and colorful three-dimensional replicas of nature.  His blossoms and creatures come alive with thousands of tiny stones anchored in a setting style called pavé . Rosenthal’s love for the camellia is evident throughout his work, and on the door to his exclusive Paris boutique, where a bronze version of the flower is carved into a doorbell.

Intricately placed rubies, pink sapphires, and diamonds on this floral brooch create the look of a camellia picked straight from the garden set in silver and gold. Image courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Collectors marvel at JAR’s beautifully  intricate designs, in which  the jewels’  gradations of color give the finished piece a painterly effect.  Oftentimes,  pieces are constructured on a core of oxidized silver to suppress the sheen of metal in order to highlight the color of a stone or pearl. While some of the gems used are exceptional, the craftsmanship of their unusual arrangement is what makes JAR truly visionary.

The form of a colorful butterfly in mid-flight is a JAR favorite, with the antennae often purposefully asymetrical. This brooch is set with sapphires, fire opals, rubies, amethyst, garnets, diamonds, silver and gold. Image courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Rosenthal formed this regal zebra brooch from black-and-white banded agate, and covered the bridle and feather plume with tiny sparkling diamonds. Rosenthal’s bejeweled animals  often stare  with eyes gleaming  with brilliant gems.

This regal zebra brooch from black-and-white banded agate is from the collection of Ann Getty. Image courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Born in New York, Rosenthal moved to Paris after graduating from Harvard. His brilliant eye for detail as a needlepoint  designer eventually translated into jewelry design.  A small, hidden boutique on the Place Vendôme became the home of JAR in 1978, and is the same space he occupies today.  Perfecting one-of-a-kind creations that express the personality of each individual buyer is a time-consuming process for JAR. , but the exclusive club of private clients is happy to wait.

Additional information on the exhibition can be found on the The Metropolitan Museum of Art website.

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