This Jewelry Collector Will Share Dozens of Diamonds, but Not His or Her Name
Who would want to spend more than 25 years collecting jewelry, put his or her esteemed private collection on view in public, and not take any semblance of credit? It’s unclear, seeing as the anonymous aficionado who has done the above only deigns to be identified as a “private American collector,” a title that became applicable two decades ago, when he or she set out to buy his or her wife a diamond necklace for their son’s bar mitzvah. The wares the collector has amassed since are now at the center of the exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur,” on view at the pop-up New York branch of the Parisian L’École, School of the Jewelry Arts, whose mission is to introduce the public to the “jewelry universe.” This time around, that’s meant stepping back not just to the 1960s but all the way to the 1800s, when famed designers like the so-called “couturier of jewelry,” Pierre Sterlé, as well as maisons like Cartier, Boucheron, Tiffany, and L’École’s partner in the exhibition, Van Cleef & Arpels, created the pieces that would eventually fall into the collector’s hands. Revel in some of their finest, from Art Deco designs to Judaica, before they all retreat into even further anonymity, here.
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An unsigned platinum and diamond bangle from the early 20th century, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Van Cleef & Arpels platinum and diamond bracelet form 1926, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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Lacloche Fr“eres platinum, diamond, ruby, emerald, and onyx earrings, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Belperron platinum, diamond, and ruby Écaille cuff from the mid-20th century, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Leroy Berlioz Art Deco bracelet made of platinum, diamonds, jadeite, coral and onyx, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Lacloche Fr“eres gold, diamond, ruby, emerald, sapphire, and onyx ring, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Van Cleef & Arpels gold, ruby, sapphire, and diamond ballerina clip from 1942, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Van Cleef & Arpels platinum, diamond, and sapphire bracelet from 1937, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Van Cleef & Arpels platinum and diamond bracelet from 1929, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Cartier platinum, gold, rock crystal, sapphire, diamond, and enamel buckle clip from 1928, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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An unsigned gold, silver, and diamond clip from the late 19th century, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Cartier platinum, diamond, rock crystal, jadeite, sapphire, and emerald bracelet from 1927, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A Cartier platinum and diamond Jabot clip from 1928, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
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A pair of Van Cleef & Arpels platinum, diamond, coral, pearl, and onyx Pampilles earrings, featured in L’École’s exhibition “Through the Eyes of a Connoisseur.”
