Jewelry curator's a gem of a storyteller

To Yvonne Markowitz, curator of jewelry at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts, context is everything. Comment on a striking silver choker around her neck, and you learn it's one of a very limited edition created in the 1970s by Finnish artist/jeweler Björn Weckström as part of his planetary series. The kicker: it became known as the Princess Leia necklace after one was worn by Carrie Fisher in "Star Wars" as a royal, intergalactic adornment. Cool.

That kind of story is Markowitz's trademark. She doesn't just give the scholarly answer, she makes decorative arts come alive by relating them to their times. In her 20-year tenure at the MFA, much of it specializing in ancient jewelry, the Framingham resident has always focused on the big picture to draw viewers in.

Museumgoers will see her approach for themselves with the opening of the MFA's new exhibit, "Imperishable Beauty: Art Nouveau Jewelry." It's Markowitz's premier show since being named the first dedicated curator of jewelry at an art museum in the United States. To emphasize the rarity of the position, even London's famed Victoria and Albert Museum, with more than 3,500 pieces of jewelry on display, has only a part-time curator.

The position was funded by MFA trustee Susan B. Kaplan through an endowment in honor of her mother, Rita J. Kaplan. Kaplan is also funding a permanent jewelry gallery at the MFA, which will open in the West Wing in 2010.

Early in the planning stages, Kaplan met with Markowitz. Though she was officially the MFA's curator of Egyptian and Nubian adornment, Markowitz served for 12 years as editor-in-chief of the now-defunct Jewelry: Journal of the American Society of Jewelry Historians, and remains editor of the scholarly Adornment magazine. She'd become the museum's go-to person for researching jewelry from a variety of historic periods.

"She's extremely knowledgeable - that's an understatement - thoroughly researches everything and is really focused on the jewelry," Kaplan says of Markowitz. In turn, Markowitz has found a kindred spirit in Kaplan. "She has a certain passion for the materials and scholarship as I do."

Both came into play when Markowitz began work on "Imperishable Beauty," a phrase coined by Art Nouveau architect Henry van de Velde to describe the turn of the 20th century art movement that rejected Victorian traditionalism. Markowitz describes the period's jewelry as "somewhat violent, with agitated curves," an often surreal exploration of flora, fauna, and the female form.

The 100-plus pieces in the show are on loan from one of the largest and most important private collections of Art Nouveau jewelry. The exhibit showcases the stunningly crafted jewels amid paintings, wallpaper patterns, and other decorative arts of the period. Even the walls and display cases play a part, echoing Art Nouveau's signature undulating curves.

"The problem with jewelry shows in the United States is they're segregated, not shown as part of a period," she continues, a situation she plans to correct.

Take a recent addition to the MFA's collection that Markowitz shepherded through the acquisition process. The fascinating history of an exquisite brooch and earring set once owned by Mary Todd Lincoln was equal to its beauty. As the widow of President Abraham Lincoln, she had been forced to sell the jewels, along with many other possessions, in 1867 to pay off mounting debts. Since Mrs. Lincoln's profligate spending habits were well known, the auction engendered much negative publicity (described by one newspaper as "low . . . sordid . . . disgraceful"), resulting in the articles selling for far less than expected. Press coverage also helped Markowitz verify the jewelry's provenance: an engraved drawing of jewels had appeared in a newspaper covering the sale.

Research into the Art Nouveau pieces proved a bit more daunting, due to the enormously complicated craftsmanship. Celebrated designers of the period, such as Rene Lalique, George Fouquet, and Louis Comfort Tiffany, didn't just create beautiful objects, they also invented entirely new techniques for making jewelry, such as adapting stained glass techniques to setting stones, and shaving horn so thin it resembles a transparent insect wing.

Then there was the basic issue of just who designed each piece, many of which are from France and Belgium. Unlike American designers, who signed each piece with a clear and relatively large inscription, the Europeans used tiny initials and a symbol, such as a sword or wolf, as their "makers' marks."

"When pressed into gold, it was often a blurry lump only 1/2 mm in size," says MFA curatorial research fellow Susan Ward, who worked on the exhibit with Markowitz. "We were using microscopes over three different magnifiers. I would say, does that look like a wolf to you? How about a chicken? At the end of the day, we started hallucinating," she jokes.

"We learned a lot," says Markowitz. "The museum didn't have one piece of Art Nouveau before." Happily, several items in the exhibit have been donated to the MFA's steadily growing cache, which now also includes the knockout Daphne Farago collection of 20th-century jewelry that drew large crowds when displayed earlier this year.

Another coup is the recent acquisition of an eye-popping emerald brooch formerly owned by cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post.

"I'm very fond of Post, her style and taste," says Markowitz. She then fantasizes about a future exhibit featuring some of Post's jewels - along with some of the heiress's clothing, photographs, and portraits for context, of course.

MFA jewelry curator Yvonne Markowitz holds a brooch once owned by cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post
Source: boston

2008 Tucson gem shows report: Cactus juice

At this year's Tucson gem shows, gem dealer Philip Zahm offered this 18-karat yellow gold and 950 platinum ring featuring a 13.3-carat Paraiba tourmaline from Mozambique, with 0.56 carats tsavorite garnets and 0.87 carats diamonds; suggested retail price is $187,950. Philipzahm.com.

Concerns about gemstone treatments, the looming Burmese ruby ban, rough-supply shortages and the struggling U.S. economy brought a prickly sense of sobriety to this year's Tucson gem shows, usually known for their relaxed sunglasses-and-sandals vibe.

But there were some new finds this year—including a deposit of Tanzanian spinel and rubies from Greenland—and although traffic seemed lighter, some dealers were pleasantly surprised to find serious buyers instead of dallying browsers.

"People are intense in looking and comparing," said René Arnoldi of Carl Friedrich Arnoldi in Idar-Oberstein, Germany. "Higher-quality material is doing well, but the medium-to-lower quality is harder to sell."

Red and pink spinel from Tanzania were attracting interest, but stones in sizes above six carats were scarce, he said. In fact, top-shelf stones of any kind from gemstone centers such as Brazil and Africa remained elusive this year, Arnoldi said, echoing the sentiments of many of the other gem dealers at the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) GemFair.

Prices on color's traditional troika—sapphire, emerald and ruby—rose in the 20 percent range, hoisted high by the weak U.S. dollar, tighter supplies and competing customers from the European and Asian markets.

Retail buyers, fresh off a holiday season that was disappointing for many, were shopping Tucson carefully.

"It's going to be another tough year," said jeweler Carla Ann Yeager, owner of Diamond Works in Chillicothe, Ohio, who said she picked up "funky pearls that you can't get from the suppliers," smoky quartz and brown quartz, all designed to appeal to her young female clients who accessorize clothing with jewels.

Despite the slowing economy, she is opting to ramp up her colored-stone marketing.

"I've started doing more full-color ads in the newspaper for jewelry with stones like pink tourmaline or (gemstones in) rainbow colors," Yeager said.

At the AGTA GemFair, Gems of Naples was offering some rare, blockbuster-size gems, including this 7.07-carat natural unheated Padparadscha sapphire, which it was selling for $9,500 per carat. (800) 477-2716 or info@gemsofnaples.com

Red alert for rubies Challenges in the U.S. ruby market have multiplied over the past year, with higher prices, a looming ban on Burmese stones and an influx of cheap, lead-glass-filled rubies among them.

"Prices on rubies have gone up 25 percent in the past six to eight months alone," said Sam Rahmanan of Sara Gems Corp. in New York, adding that prices increased 100 percent over the past two years. "The dollar is weak and the same money just doesn't buy as much anymore."

Depending on quality and origin, ruby prices throughout the shows ranged from as low as $400 or $500 per carat to as high as $100,000 per carat for natural, pigeon-blood-red Burmese rubies.

For fine stones, average prices ranged from $1,500 per carat for Thai rubies to about $2,500 for Burmese rubies from Myanmar's Mong Hsu region to about $4,000 per carat for stones from Myanmar's storied Mogok mines, said Richard Drucker, publisher of The Guide, at his popular "Best Buys in Tucson" seminar at the AGTA GemFair. While prices were up about 20 percent on natural stones, treated-ruby prices were flat, he said.

Creating positive buzz this year was Canada-based True North Gems, which was selling rubies mined in Greenland in smaller and melee sizes.

Glass half full for treated stones But there was negative reaction to lead-glass-filled rubies, which some of the exhibitors at the Tucson shows were selling for telltale low prices of $10 to $50 per carat for polished goods. Since hitting the U.S. market in 2005, the stones have circulated to the point that the American Gemological Laboratories (AGL) started calling the stones "composite rubies" on grading reports. The treatment, which involves heating and injecting glass into the stones, is easily detectable by labs, but the level of lead glass used to seal major flaws and fractures has set off alarms.

"Do you want to call it a ruby or do you want to call it ruby pieces in glass?" asked Dr. Lore Kiefert, laboratory director of the AGTA Gemological Testing Center, during a seminar where she displayed a slide of a lead-glass-filled ruby, splintered by cracks after it was exposed to heat during the resetting process. "It's not only cavity filling any more. It's more than that."

In addition to heat, the treatments are also susceptible to solvents, including everyday household cleaners.

Adding to the ruby challenges this year is a looming U.S. ban on gemstones from Myanmar, producer of 90 percent of the world's rubies. At press time, the act had not yet been signed into law, but most dealers were opposed to it, saying it will hurt small Burmese ruby miners and Thai cutters more than its real target—the ruling military junta responsible for human rights atrocities in Myanmar. It is also expected to drive up ruby prices.

Some retailers, including Tiffany and Co., have stopped selling Burmese rubies because of the Myanmar conflict, and Stuller has begun offering rubies from Madagascar.

Designer Diana Widman, a regular at the Tucson shows, created a new collection featuring homegrown gems from Montana. Hand-fabricated in 18-karat gold with several hinged joints for flexibility, this necklace features 20 carats of natural Montana sapphire crystals and a 4-carat unheated purple spinel; suggested retail price is $11,000. Widmandesign.com

Sapphires, particularly blue, remain a favorite among jewelers and consumers, dealers said. For fine-quality goods, average prices ranged from about $1,000 for Malagasy stones to $3,500 per carat and above for Burmese.

Although the stone remains one of the least controversial, a new treatment has emerged. During the Accredited Gemologist Association (AGA) conference, Christopher Smith, vice president and chief gemologist of the AGL, said he examined a batch of sapphires that were neon blue in color, similar to Paraiba tourmaline or Malagasy apatite. The stones were purchased by New York gem dealers, who bought them in Thailand, where they were described as beryllium-diffused. Analysis showed they were treated with cobalt in a new heat-treatment process detectable with a microscope or Chelsea filter, Smith said.

For the last few years, emerald has seen a resurgence in popularity, and prices have been steady, at about $1,800 per carat for a 1-carat Zambian stone and $2,500 per carat for a 1-carat Colombian emerald, but this year, the figures are steadily moving upward, Drucker said.

"There's a lot of good production coming out of the La Pita [mine in Colombia], but other forces like the weak dollar are likely to keep prices firm," he said.

But one issue that may impact emeralds this year is trade-press reports of poor-quality emeralds treated in their rough and pre-cut forms with polymers that are essentially gluing them together.

"People are concerned and that's what we're here for. That's what we tried to eliminate," said Bryan Alderhold, Eternity Natural Emerald's executive vice president. The company treats its emeralds with ExCel, a polymer-based treatment that, unlike others, can be removed and also carries a lifetime guarantee.

The company carries a 50-50 mix of Colombian and Afghani emeralds, with goods ranging from $500 per carat on the lower end to $12,000 and $40,000 per carat on the high end, though the average is about $3,500 to $4,500.

Rock stars of the show Prices for tanzanite, always a crowd-pleaser in Tucson, were holding steady at about $400 to $550 per carat for stones that are two to three carats in size. The Tanzanite Foundation has created its own grading scale, and has partnered with labs to produce reports that give grades for clarity, cut and color.

"This could be the first [grading system for color] that actually becomes universal, because it's not one lab imposing it on all the other labs," Kiefert said.

Dealers who specialize in fine and unusual stones cited strong demand, though they were surprised at who was buying.

"We hoped with the exchange rate to see more foreign buyers, but there were very few Europeans," said Laurie Watt of Mayer and Watt in Maysville, Ky. "And our American clients bought more than we expected. We've been selling finer, higher-end stones. Not necessarily bigger, but finer."

In addition to unheated corundum, Mayer and Watt favorites included mint Afghani tourmaline, selling for $250 to $450 per carat, and purple cuprian tourmaline, for $350 per carat.

Last year, an influx of blue-green Mozambique tourmaline that resembled Paraiba tourmaline from Brazil prompted the world's top gemological labs, via the Laboratory Manual Harmonization Committee, to expand the term Paraiba to other copper-bearing tourmaline.

An assortment of gemstones from Stuller are part of what the company dubbed the "Blue Music" trend, colors that appeal to consumers who value virtues like trust, clarity and balance. Stuller.com

Some opposed the looser terminology, but this year the debate seems to have cooled.

"Some really want the Brazilian material; some only care for the beauty of the piece," said Edelito Oliveira of Hubert in Los Angeles, whose African Paraiba tourmaline was about $3,000 per carat.

The weak U.S. dollar has had an impact on the price of rough colored gemstones for dealers, including those buying from Brazil, where the currency ratio has slipped from about $3 U.S. dollars to one Brazilian real, to $1.75 to one real, he said.

Mozambique tourmaline now fetches as much as $7,000 per carat for fine goods, and from $7,000 to $16,000 for extra-fine goods. For the Brazilian Paraibas, which remain more difficult to find, prices ranged from $6,000 to $15,000 for fine stones to $15,000 to $20,000 for extra-fine.

"Mozambique tourmaline is still getting a lot of buzz," said Philip Zahm of Philip Zahm and Associates in Aptos, Calif. Other hot sellers were Tanzanian spinel in pinks and reds, which were selling for $600 to $800 per carat for 1-carat stones and $1,000 to $1,500 for those sized two to three carats.

A surprise hit at the show was jade, according to Daniel Mason of Mason-Kay in Littleton, Colo., who said the company had its best Tucson show ever. A ban on Burmese gemstones would impact jade dealers as well as ruby dealers, but that didn't seem to be the reason behind the surge in interest, he said. Instead, the color green seemed to be trendy this year, in part because of the interest in the environment.

"With jade, there's not much [consumer information] on it and jewelers can sell it for more than keystone," Mason said. Prices range from about $15 per stone for commercial quality to $50,000 to $60,000 for fine quality.

Dealing with the topaz blues Since the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) stepped in last year to address the lack of licensees for testing irradiated blue topaz, several companies have received licenses.

Only those who initially import and distribute irradiated gemstones need licenses from the NRC, so retailers need only check with their suppliers to make sure that is the case.

Still, given the red tape and expenses involved in importing and selling blue topaz, other types of treated blue topaz and coated topaz were getting a fresh look. Joe Orlando, Stuller's vice president for gemstones, said that the company is applying for a distributor license from the NRC, but in the meantime is selling diffused blue topaz from Signity, which is promoting its diffused blue topaz with the motto: "Genuine topaz—no radiation, no complication."

"We stopped selling irradiated topaz eight or nine years ago because we saw this coming," said Hubert Salvenmoser, a product manager for Swarovski, which owns the Signity brand.

Also stepping up its topaz game is Azotic Coating Technologies, which uses its patented coating process to produce coated topaz, quartz and cubic zirconia in colors such as the popular blue-green iridescent "Mystic fire."

Kevin Bennet, the company chairman and a speaker at the AGA conference, noted that though the treatment is durable and permanent, the coatings can come off if the stones are placed in acids or pickling solutions.

"Treat them like pearls or opals," he said.

Jorg-Heinz's "Diamond Cages" necklace with South Sea pearls and 18-karat gold clasp with diamonds. Joerg-heinz.de

Freshwater fever In pearl jewelry, freshwater pearl sales continued to hold steady, and there were few changes in what retailers were asking for, according to exhibitors, who said demand for baroque pearls was still going strong.

"People are always looking for baroques in the South Sea and Tahitians," said Colleen Reynolds of A and Z Pearls in Los Angeles. With the price of gold at record levels, pearl jewelry is becoming an attractive alternative, she said. Favorite pieces included Ikecho freshwater pearls.

Peter Bazar of Imperial Deltah Pearls said this year's pearl buyers were going for the lower price points and lower quality of goods. To deal with the challenging economy, his company has purchased pearl farms in Tahiti, the Cook Islands and China.

"We've been able to reduce costs by aggressively going to the source," he said. Still, some challenges lie ahead, and the weak U.S. dollar has hurt the Providence, R.I.-based company. Bazar also noted production problems with the Chinese akoyas that will probably hit the market next year.

A strand of fine-quality freshwaters, 10-to-11 millimeters in size, was going for $2,800 at Imperial Deltah.

Kamlesh Kothari of Premier Pearl said he was getting more requests for pearl drops rather than baroques this year and said that Chinese goods remain plentiful though the better material is hard to find. Still, top-quality Chinese freshwaters are almost approaching South Seas pearls in quality, he said.

"Prices are firm this year, and they were already strong because of the European and Asian markets," Kothari said.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

International Jewellery Kobe ends with solid results

Organizers of this year's International Jewellery Kobe (IJK 2008) have announced solid business results for the show held last month.

A record 641 exhibitors from 23 countries attended the May 15-17 show, as did 16,228 visitors, accounting for the fair's largest scale yet.

A total of 168 overseas exhibitors participated in the event, increasing from 142 overseas exhibitors last year.

International exhibits at the Kobe International Exhibition Hall, where the show was held, included special country pavilions from Italy and Japan, a well as collections from Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Japan, Lithuania, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.

Among the elements drawing buyers in was the show's World Pearl Area, an exhibition held each year where buyers can source top-quality pearls, plus Design World and the Designer's and Craftsman Pavilion, featuring new, fashionable jewelry.

The next International Jewellery Kobe will be held from May 14-16, 2009, at the Kobe International Exhibition Hall. IJK's sister show, the International Jewellery Tokyo (IJT), will be held from Jan. 21-24, 2009, at Tokyo Big Sight. IJT is the biggest jewelry trade show in Japan, and it will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2009. The First Tokyo International Watch Fair, the only international watch trade show in Japan, will be held concurrently with IJT.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

IIJS 2008 Expects 30,000 Attendees

Plans for the India International Jewellery Show 2008 are underway as it readies to celebrate its 25th anniversary. India's largest jewelry show will be held Aug. 7 - 11 in Mumbai.

About 30,000 trade visitors will attend IIJS 2008. Among the 750 exhibitors, 500 will be from India and 250 from other countries.

Business of $700 million was transacted during the five days of IIJS 2007.
 

IIJS also provides platform to the leading industry bodies such as World Gold Council, Platinum Guild International and Diamond companies such as Rio Tinto, Diamond Trading Company to effectively network for business.
Source: jckonline

Jewelry Shanghai: Visitor Numbers Down but Quality Up

Jewelry Shanghai 2008 concluded Sunday after a weekend-long exhibition that started May 8 at the Shanghai New international Expo Center. On the last day of the show, hours before companies began packing up their booths, foot-traffic was light, mostly made up of members of the public, with a few trade members here and there.

Prominent designs included gold jewelry set with small size diamonds, with a good deal of jade, amber, pearls and precious stone pieces all around. Diamantaires noted good sales of SI+ / D-G goods. 

Jane Kao of Taipei, Taiwan-based jewelry wholesale company Bennie Wang Jewelry, exhibiting for the first time at Jewelry Shanghai, remarked that the visitor numbers were much lower than she had expected and that most of the attendees she saw were consumers. The company sells its own designs to retailers, and, although Kao says that the industry members she did meet were interested, sales were “not good.”

“We are mostly here to promote our company and to test if people in Shanghai like our product. We are different from others who sell mass-produced items. Ours are all designed in-house, in small numbers. Nevertheless, I expected to see more people here.” Kao commented that a recent downturn in the Shanghai stock market, as well as overall concern about the economy kept people away.

Anna Tchapovshaia, of Botswana Diamonds, a brand manufactured by DTC Botswana Sightholder DIA Holdings and distributed in China by Trinity Diamond, echoed the sentiment, that most of the attendees they saw were consumers, not trade members. However, despite this she says that the brand is there almost purely for the PR opportunity, and “in terms of this, we’re happy with the show.”

Official visitor numbers were not made available from show organizers.

Raymond Cohen, sales executive of Antwerp-based DTC Sightholder Tache Company NV, emphasized that the relatively sparse crowds at the show didn’t faze him. “Numbers are down, definitely, but the quality of buyers is up,” he says.

Cohen also gave some advice to foreign companies exhibiting in China. “Chinese buyers want a large range of goods. I think a lot of companies come here with a very specific set of goods, that people here may or may not want, but you can’t do that.” When asked how the show is going for him, he said that it is going very well. “It’s simple,” Cohen says. “If you have the goods, it’s fine; if not, it’s not good.” He said most buyers had been interested in everything but SI goods.

Raj Impex Shanghai Limited is a company that has been selling in Shanghai for approximately two years now and that specializes in small goods below 0.30 carat. “Mac,” a sales executive, echoed the complaints of other exhibitors that people were simply not buying. Those that had been buying were mostly Chinese, Japanese and Korean buyers.

He stressed that the show is very small in comparison to others in the region, such as Hong Kong, but that the event is a good opportunity to meet and gain new customers from cities in the Shanghai area that may not come to Hong Kong.

Show organizers said that there were 400 exhibiting companies from China, Hong Kong, India, Belgium, Israel, Taiwan and others. Shanghai, they say, makes up 20 percent of the Chinese jewelry industry’s total sales and is an important distribution and consolidating center for the country’s industry.
Source: idexonline

Designer Showcase to open in New York

The National Jewelry Institute will inaugurate its first-ever exhibition of contemporary jewelry from leading designers, the "2008 Designer Showcase," opening this week at the Forbes Galleries in New York City.

Almost 40 designers, including prestigious global brands and independent designers, are represented in the show, which is curated by jewelry expert Ralph Esmerian, with the help of guest curators Beth Rudin DeWoody, Saks Fifth Avenue and the World Gold Council.

The exhibition opens to the public this Friday, April 25, and the jewelry will be on display through June 28, 2008.

Designer Showcase will then move to Pittsburgh, where it will run from July 19, 2008, through Jan. 18, 2009, at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Jewelry designers featured in the exhibition are: Stephanie Albertson, Giorgio Armani, Cynthia Bach, Elyssa Bass, Lorenz Baumer, Marco Bicego, Katy Briscoe, Bulgari, Cartier, Cinta by John Hardy, Dominique Cohen, Roberto Coin, Lydia Courteille, Adria de Haume, Enigma, Tanya Farah, Mia Fonssagrives-Solow, Veronica Garaycochea, Graff, Gucci, Gurhan, Erhan Gursen, Christine Hafermalz-Wheeler, Joan Hornig, Ippolita, Marchak, Sandra Muller, Judith Ripka, Fabio Salini, Leila Tai, Temple St. Clair, Utopia, Vhernier, Donna Vock, Stephen Webster, Tracey Zabar, Zaffiro, Steven Zale, Irene Zelinsky.

The National Jewelry Institute is a New York-based nonprofit whose mission is to preserve, research and exhibit fine jewelry from all over the world.

For more information about the institute and the 2008 Designer Showcase, visit Nationaljewelryinstitute.org.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

Hong Kong Gem Fair Shows Glamour, Trends in Global Jewelry Industry

Hong Kong is one of the world's leading markets for jewelry. Claudia Blume went to the city's international jewelry fair to find out about the latest trends in the industry - such as the effect of rising gold prices, the growing popularity of diamonds in the region and China's rise as the world's pearl center.

Gem dealer inspects strings of pearls (file photo)

In Hall Seven of Hong Kong's Convention and Exhibition Center, table after table is stacked with strings of pearls, looking more like a rummage sale than a display of luxury and elegance. Most of the pearls are from one country: China.

Didier Brodbeck, a French pearl expert, says Chinese fresh water pearls now account for about 95 percent of the world's total pearl production.

"The boom is very recent, maybe 10 years ago, but the pearls are getting better and better, bigger and bigger, and more attractive, you know," said Brodbeck. "In the early days, they were not very good quality pearls. They are still very, very cheap, because the production is so big."

While mass cultivation has caused the price of pearls to drop dramatically in the past few years, South Sea pearls from countries such as Polynesia and Australia remain expensive. This is because they are more rare, because they develop naturally in oysters in the sea.

Brodbeck says Hong Kong has become the center of the pearl business in the past decade, after taking over from the previous pearl capital, Kobe, Japan. But Brodbeck says Hong Kong may lose its position to a newly created city in mainland China. Pearl City, in Zhuji, on the Yangtze River is set to open later this year. It aims at becoming the world's leading center for the cultivation and trade of pearls.

"They want to take the business away from Kobe and Hong Kong and have a world pearl market open every day of the week, all year round, so people can buy any kind of pearls, and they want the Chinese, the Japanese, Polynesians - everybody to come who has interest in dealing with pearls," he said. "And, when the project will be done they expect to have like 4500 firms established there that will be open seven days a week."

Vendor holds handful of fancy colored sapphires including a huge 26.83 carat blue sapphire

Hong Kong's International Jewelry Show is the world's third largest fair of its kind. More than 2300 exhibitors participated in the latest fair, setting a record.

Hong Kong is the world's fourth-largest exporter of precious jewelry. The city is also the world's biggest exporter of imitation jewelry and a leading producer of gold items.

Many producers have been affected by rising gold prices. The price surged more than 30 percent in the past year, reaching a historic high of almost $1,000 an ounce this month.

This Hong Kong producer of gold jewelry, who mainly sells to the United States, says his profit has shrunk because now customers buy cheaper items.

"Looking at Valentine's Day sales' turnover, for example, was the units haven't really gone down in America - the sales value has definitely gone down," he said. "Also, the buyers ask for a lot more silver products which we don't specialize in, and silver and gold."

Some parts of the world have remained relatively unaffected by higher gold prices. Simon Yau, with the World Gold Council, says in China, demand remains high.

"For example the last year, in 2007, the gold demand in China is already (up) over something 20 percent," Yau noted. "Also in the first two months of this year - that means January and February - demand is still growing up comparing to last year. It is about 20-something percent growth compared to last year. We believe that retail and the consumer demand is still there. They have money."

China became the world's second biggest gold buyer, last year, overtaking the United States. The world's biggest buyer remains India, where gifts of gold jewelry play an important part in weddings and other celebrations.

In both India and China, there is a growing interest in diamonds, as a symbol of newly acquired wealth. This employee of an Israeli diamond firm says that as sales in the United States have fallen, because of the economic downturn there. Her company increasingly focuses on India and China.

"At one time, it was just China was buying for production and exporting. Now, they are buying for their own consumption," she said. "And, the same with India. India used to buy and export - just for manufacturing and then export it and now the Indian population, 10 percent of the Indian population is very, very wealthy and that 10 percent people have now become very interested in diamonds and the money they have is phenomenal."

It is India's fashionable youth who are driving diamond sales. They see diamonds as more trendy than traditional gold. With a large population of educated young adults entering the job market in India, traders at the Hong Kong fair expect to see a strong market there for years.
Source: voanews

Hong Kong International Jewelry Show

Source: yahoo

Aamana Shaiff at the India Gem & Jewelry Showroom

TV Actress Aamana Shaiff smiles at the inauguration of the India Gem & Jewelry Showroom at South City Mall in Kolkata, India.
Source: yahoo

Supermodels grace jewelry show

Chinese supermodel Xiong Dailin graces a jewelry show in Hong Kong on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2008.
Source: xinhuanet

Jewelry designers attend trade show in Providence

Several hundred jewelry designers and crafters came to Providence this week for a trade show at the Rhode Island Convention Center. Sponsored by the Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America, the show was geared to matching up the owners of small jewelry businesses with suppliers and manufacturers.

Attendees sifted through strands of beads and semiprecious stones, examined new jewelry-making tools, and were able to take production classes and seminars on the business aspects of the craft.

MJSA revived its Providence show last year after a five-year hiatus.

MJSA runs shows and training sessions for industry members and speaks for the industry on trade matters and legislative issues. The association represents more than 1,900 jewelry companies around the country.

Joanne Pinto, left, of J.Leslie Designs of New Jersey, picks out colored stones with Elaine Cyr, of Cranston, who is working with A to Z Bohemian Glass Inc. of New York, yesterday at the show.
The Providence Journal / Steve Szydlowski

Jewelry still makes collector's eyes sparkle

Viewing Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry From the Helen Williams Drutt Collection, you might think poor Helen Williams Drutt has to walk around unadorned these days.

Not so.

Drutt, whose collection was acquired by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, in 2002, visited the museum recently wearing loads of bold, wearable art — including a new wedding ring.

"I'm 76 and a bride," she said, beaming. Jet-black hair peeked from under her well-worn Panama hat, and her eyes sparkled through massive Jean Paul Gaultier glasses with curly metal "eyelashes" at the corners.

She flashed a stacked-look gold wedding band by British artist Breon O'Casey, who also made the big silver cuffs on each of her arms.

But it was hard not to stare at her elaborate Peter Skubic brooch of stainless steel, which looked like a maze of mirrors and feathers. Then there were the Georg Dobler earrings, square assemblages of colored glass. And a large Max Frölich ring that could knock a guy out if it hit him right.

MFAH curator Cindi Strauss aptly calls Drutt "a walking billboard for the field." Not in a tacky sense, of course — it was all displayed against the clean palette of a black dress.

Even without the arty bling, Drutt can command a room. The undisputed queen of contemporary craft, she sweeps into a room with authority, seeming much taller than she is. She's self-effacing and slightly mischievous, the sort of woman who takes you by the arm and leans in close to share a juicy story.

"She was the person who introduced America to the idea that jewelry could be something other than what is traditional," Strauss says. (Although Strauss admits that some exhibit visitors might question the wearability of such highly conceptual works as Hiramatsu Yasuki's Crown or David Watkins' Hinged Loop Neckpiece With Three Bars.)

Drutt bought her first piece of art jewelry in 1968 from legendary jewelry designer Stanley Lechtzin, who pioneered the technique of electroforming, or forming metal with molds. She also met Lechtzin's friends and students — also pioneers — and was soon collecting obsessively all over the world.

In Philadelphia, her hometown (and Lechtzin's), she founded one of the first galleries devoted to jewelry by academic artists, also focusing on ceramics. Over about 40 years, she amassed the most important cache of contemporary art jewelry in the United States, and one of the top three in the world. The MFAH's Drutt Collection now comprises about 800 works, representing 175 artists from 18 countries, tracing every aspect of the craft's development.

Only about a third of it appears in Ornament as Art — and even so, the exhibit is encyclopedic.

Drutt's delight was palpable as she once again saw brooches, necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings — as well as a few sketches — now ensconced behind Plexiglas. To her, they represent a lifetime of work and friendships.

"I feel very privileged as a layperson to have been part of this community of artists," she said.

And while she said she never considered it "ornament," she has worn most of the pieces in the exhibit. (One suspects, if she'd figured out how, she might have donned even the drawings.)

"I haven't worn this, because it didn't fit quite right," she admitted, pressing her index finger against the case containing a gold mold of that same finger, now known officially as Gerd Rothmann's Index Finger.

Drutt looked at her flesh finger again.

"The reason I wanted this gold finger is because I love to write," she said, "and I wish this finger had ink in it, and I could just write with it all the time."

Next to Index Finger sits another piece by Rothman — The Golden Nose of Helen Drutt — a mold of her nose made in 1994, which she did wear, albeit disappointingly.

"I wore it to a Salvador Dali opening at the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts," she explained. "I thought everyone would comment, but no one did. They must have thought I'd broken my nose. So I was just incognito the whole night."

She stepped toward works from the late 1960s, including Albert Paley's Double Fibula Brooch. Houstonians know Paley as the creator of the grand metal sculptures alongside the Wortham Theater Center's elevators; but for about a decade he also made jewelry, and these pieces are rare.

Double Fibula is more than 5 1/2 inches long and wide, with a pin clasp nearly that long on the back.

"The first time I wore it, I was invited to a grand dinner party with a lot of famous artists," Drutt said. "I wanted to be smashing. And to be innovative, I wore the brooch at my waist. Then during dinner, the clasp disengaged."

Not far away, another slightly problematic piece caught her attention: Ken Cory's Squash Blossom Necklace, made of tiny light bulbs, bullet shells, a bronze-cast pencil, brass and leather. "The light bulbs are fragile, so I couldn't wear it much," she said. "But I love the bent pencil."

In an area featuring some especially unwearable-looking works made of alternative materials such as paper, Drutt thought about home.

"Those were on a mannequin in my library," she said, eyeing necklaces and a headpiece by Lam de Wolf and Caroline Broadhead's nylon monofilament Necklace / Veil. "And those laminated collars (Hiroko Sato Pijanowski and Eugene Pijanowski's Mizuhiki) were on a vertical wall in my bedroom, arranged rather beautifully."

At home, her collection also occupied a print drawer, a safe and several safe-deposit boxes. "I take care of things," she said curtly.

"Oh, here's the BOE box!," she said, veering toward a section of the exhibit about the depth of artistic influences on contemporary jewelry — minimalism, the Bauhaus movement, you name it. This box is one of only 15 such assemblages made by a revolutionary Dutch collective in the 1970s.

"I acquired it because I happened to meet the artist at a conference," Drutt explained. "Chance has played an amazing role."

Drutt suggested she was driven in part by a sense of responsibility to record the history of this art form: "I acquired some of these works because people were dying and needed to be remembered."

She has long collected living people, too. Her Philadelphia home is a famous gathering spot for visiting scholars, artists, architects and poets. That all began, she said, after her first husband, the poet Maurice English, died in 1983, and the nearby University of Pennsylvania began asking if she'd put people up. Some stayed for months. (Strauss suggests that as a result, Drutt's home is as important today as Alfred Stieglitz's studio was in the early 20th century.)

"It's a lot of sheets," Drutt quipped.

She was just warming up, getting chummy with the reporter. But she was due to give a lecture, so the museum's staff rushed her along.

She resisted, lingering at yet another piece along a wall of "narrative" jewelry — pieces that, appropriately enough, tell stories. (Imagine a scene from Moby Dick depicted in a silver pendant.)

And she wanted to show off that ring on her left hand. In May, Drutt married Peter Stern, an art-world luminary who is president of the Storm King Art Center, a major outdoor sculpture garden in New York state.

"I've been alone 15 years," she said. "I'll be 77 in November. And our families have known each other for a long time."

A museum staffer almost had to lead her out by the arm. Drutt hadn't yet had breakfast, she said, and she was hungry. But not to worry, she said. Food could wait.
Source: chron

Marie Antoinette's pearls to fetch more than $700,000

This historically important necklace, which features pearls that once belonged to Marie Antoinette, is up for auction on Dec. 12.

London—By now, the much-maligned "Let them eat cake" phrase, attributed to Marie Antoinette's treatment of the poor, has been ruled out as nothing more than a fable.

That's not to say, however, that the most-famed queen of France's legacy of extreme extravagance is at all false. Marie Antoinette continues to be remembered for the exorbitant amount of money she spent on everything from clothing to jewels.

Auction house Christie's is now offering a part of that legacy to the public. In its upcoming "Magnificent Jewellery" sale, to be held on Dec. 12, Christie's is offering a historically important natural-pearl, diamond and ruby necklace, the pearls of which belonged to Marie Antoinette.

The necklace has never before been offered at auction, and the pearls have been in the same family for more than 200 years, Christie's said in a statement. The necklace is estimated to fetch between about $711,830 and $813,520.

The necklace was made in 1849 and features a fringe of 21 graduated drop-shaped natural gray pearls, each suspended from an old-cut diamond collet surmounted to a diamond ribbon. The ribbon is intertwined with a ruby collar that is set with 12 button-shaped natural gray pearls, mounted in gold.

The historically important pearls came into the possession of Elizabeth Leveson-Gower, the Lady Sutherland, during Marie Antoinette's imprisonment at the height of the French Revolution. The queen gave the pearls, along with the diamonds, to Lady Sutherland for safekeeping.

Anyone caught in possession of this jewelry risked severe punishment, but Lady Sutherland, the wife of the British ambassador, had diplomatic immunity, so she was one of the few who could be trusted to return the jewels when the queen escaped.

The plan was never realized, however. Marie Antoinette was put to death by guillotine in 1793 on the precept of treason.

The diamonds were later fashioned into the Sutherland diamond necklace, and the pearls were mounted on the occasion of the marriage of Lady Sutherland's grandson George Granville William Sutherland-Leveson-Gower to Anne Hay-McKenzie.

"It is exceptionally rare to be able to offer jewels that belonged to Marie Antoinette and which are completely fresh to the market," Raymond Sancroft-Baker, senior director of Christie's Jewellery, London, said in a statement. "The story behind the pearls and their integral integration into this necklace for the Sutherland-Leveson-Gower family wedding in 1849 adds to the fascinating history of this necklace."
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

Wanchai jewelry show to offer reward program

Event management company World Trade Fair Ltd. has created a new jewelry show, the September Hong Kong Jewellery Show at Wanchai, to take place from Sept. 23-27 at the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre.

The show aims to introduce innovative exhibition concepts such as a new venue and new ideas, as well as a group of new suppliers such as India's Moon Diamond and Hong Kong's Sky Jewellery Inc.

New product will also be exhibited at the show such as Wisecorp Group (HK) Ltd.'s earrings and pendant set in 18-karat white gold and micro-pavé-set diamonds.

Another highlight of the show will be a buyers' reward program dubbed Frequent Buyer Incentive (F.B.i.). This will offer professional buyers mileage points that can be redeemed for free airfare or hotel accommodations for a future trip to Hong Kong. To earn the mileage, buyers must join the program by visiting the September Hong Kong Jewellery Show at Wanchai, and then visit and source from any of the Hong Kong jewelry exhibitions.

The program was created to further promote Hong Kong jewelry exhibitions to the global jewelry market.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

Houston Museum Presents Avant-Garde Jewelry

Houston Museum will present avant-garde jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection from September 30, 2007 to January 21, 2008.

In 2002, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, acquired the Helen Williams Drutt Collection of contemporary jewelry. Comprised of 720 pieces of jewelry dating from 1963 to the present, the collection provides a global look at the field. Over 175 artists from 18 different countries are represented in the holdings.

Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection fully explores the impact of contemporary jewelry as a global art form. the goal of the exhibition is to broaden the understanding of contemporary jewelry through a multilayered, critical assessment of the history, issues, and most importantly, the jewelry itself. Placed in context with seminal movements in the non-craft art world, the exhibition encourages the appreciation of contemporary jewelry beyond its traditional boundaries without ignoring its roots. Approximately 300 objects, including about 275 pieces of jewelry, 20 drawings and watercolors, and 3 constructions and sculptures are included in the exhibition.

the exhibition begins in the 1960s, when a dramatic shift occurred in how ornament and jewelry were perceived. Breaking with tradition, artists placed their works within larger artistic movements, signaling a period of independence in which concepts and ideas were valued more than precious materials. In Europe, artists such as Claus Bury, Gijs Bakker, Gerd Rothmann, and Emmy van Leersum incorporated alternative materials into their dynamic, often sculptural, pieces. the influence of these avant-garde artists, based in Germany and the Netherlands, on jewelry artists in Europe and particularly America, cannot be overstated. their work in the exhibition includes seminal pieces from this era as well as drawings. American jewelers were exposed to Claus Bury´s jewelry through his Philadelphia lectures in 1973, his teaching at the Rhode island School of Design in 1979, and his visit to the Museum of Modern Art in New York, as well as the Objects to Wear exhibition of Dutch jewelry that toured the United States in 1969.

In America, Stanley Lechtzin´s innovative use of industrial technology made possible the development of organic forms and the fusion of diverse materials, while Albert Paley developed a forged aesthetic that boldly challenged the prevailing traditions. Lechtzin, Paley, and Olaf Skoogfors´s residencies at the Tyler School of Arts and the Philadelphia College of Arts made Philadelphia an early center for progressive jewelry. the jewelry department at RisD also played a vital role by hosting European jewelers for workshops, teaching fellowships, and lectures.

the growing sense of community in the 1970s is captured by examining the importance of university programs, exhibitions such as Objects USA, journals, and the establishment of galleries such as Electrum in London, Galerie am Graben in Vienna, Galerie Ra in Amsterdam and Helen Drutt:Philadelphia. This community accelerated artistic development across geographical lines resulting in a widespread use of plastics, fiber, and other materials throughout the 1980s. it also began to encourage the building of collections by museums and private individuals.

the exhibition continues into the 1980s and 1990s demonstrating the growing maturity of American jewelry, as well as the development of second generation artists abroad. the avant-garde nature of the works, the artist´s sometimes controversial use of scale and form, as well as the reliance on concept and ideas are explored.

the picture shows Peter Chang, Bracelet, 1991, 2002.3684, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Helen Williams Drutt Collection, gift of the Morgan Foundation, Peter Chang. -- http://www.mfah.org/
Source: huliq

Atlanta Jewelry Show attracts Southeast buyers

Organizers of this year's August 2007 Atlanta Jewelry Show have posted brisk order-writing, popular feedback on the enhanced buyer-rewards program and a 5 percent increase in attendance over last year.

Held from Aug. 11-13 at the Cobb Galleria Centre, the show attracted a record number of retailers from outside of its traditional Southeastern market, organizers said in a media release.

Attendance by Texan retailers increased 25 percent, while retailers from Indiana, Ohio and Louisiana were also out in strong showing. In addition, organizers said they recorded a significant jump in attendance from Mississippi retailers.

"These numbers are proof positive that a regional jewelry show is still an important factor in the business plans of today's independent retailers," Carol Young, executive director of the Southern Jewelry Travelers Association (SJTA), producer of the show, said in a statement. "They know that they can find the top lines, new designs, educational programming and networking events offered at national shows and can afford to bring the store associates as well."

Among the show highlights was the recently revamped SJTA Rewards Buyer Loyalty program, which allowed retailers to earn points quicker than in the past and redeem them for a wider range of rewards, the MJSA of America Jewelry Academy and an opportunity to view the Gemological Institute of America Museum's rare collection of Brazilian jewelry.

The Atlanta Jewelry Show will return to the Cobb Galleria Centre from March 1-3, 2008.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

Princess Diana necklace to go on display

Jewelry is more than just a pretty item thanks in part to the Kazanjian Foundation.

The foundation sponsors the Jewels for Charity program, which allows people to donate fine jewelry to a charity they choose and, in turn, receive the highest tax benefit possible by law.

The program has star status. The Jewels for Charity Hollywood Collection showcases pieces formerly owned by celebrities including Bing Crosby, Clark Gable, Madonna, Howard Hughes and Eva Gabor. The latest addition to the collection is a sapphire and gold floral-themed necklace with the Prince of Wales emblem previously owned by Princess Diana (this item, however, is not for sale).

The Hollywood Collection hits the road worldwide to fine jewelry stores, galleries and museums. The venues that host the collection are asked to sell the donated jewelry at full fair-market value. In turn, the host donates 30 percent of the profits to a charity of its choice, while the other 70 percent goes to the donor's charity of choice with the donor receiving the tax benefit. The stipulations include that a charity must be 501C (3) nonprofit, tax exempt and domiciled in the United States.

Furthermore, donated jewelry must be valued at more than $10,000 a piece and tour with the collection for two years for sale at the appraised full fair-market value. If a piece goes unsold, it will be auctioned with the profits going to the donor's charity of choice.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork

Istanbul Jewelry Show-II to begin Aug. 30

Istanbul Jewelry Show-II, the 25th International Jewelry, Silver, Watch and Equipment Fair, will be held Aug. 30 – Sept. 02, at the Istanbul Expo Center (CNR Expo). Gold jewelry, diamond jewelry, precious and semi-precious stones and pearls, silver jewelry and households, mountings, watches & clocks, machinery, tools & equipments, display units, security devices, and software will be displayed just for industry professionals.

Istanbul Jewelry Show is sponsored by the Turkish Association of Jewellers and organized by Rotaforte Int’l Trade Fairs and Media.

Turkey is the third largest manufacturer of gold jewelry in the world and Turkish jewelry manufacturers are increasingly becoming a fine jewelry manufacturer rather than just a mass producer.

The Istanbul Jewelry Show is putting more emphasis on design work, bringing jewelry designers from all around the world, building and promoting worldwide awareness of fine design jewelry.

Turkey exports gold jewelry to 140 countries. The U.S. is its largest consumer, followed by the UAE, Italy, Russia, Germany and Israel.

The March 2007 edition of the show featured 1,056 local and international exhibitors from 29 countries. Istanbul Jewelry Show-II, 2007 is expected to attract more than 15,000 trade visitors and 650 local and international exhibitors.
Source: jckonline