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Amid Controversy, Here are the 4 Jewelers at the Biennale
Associate Editor Ashley Davis takes an Insta-look at the few design houses that adjusted to the new tone of the Paris Biennale des Antiquaires.
Pictured here is a brooch from high jeweler Cindy Chao.
Change is in the air at the Biennale des Antiquaires.
Going on now in Paris at the Grand Palais, this year marks the show’s 28th and last presentation as a biennial event. In 2017 it will return as an annual affair.
But that’s not the controversial part. What was once the most concentrated showing of haute joaillerie is now but a sampling.
Only four jewelry houses, De Grisogono, Boghossian, Nirav Modi and Cindy Chao, are represented at this year’s fair, down from the 14 that exhibited in 2014.
Reportedly, the last Biennale’s exhibitors, like Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Boucheron, Chaumet and Piaget, were unhappy about reduced booth space this year, which was enacted at the request of the antiques dealers, though organizers are hoping that the missing brands will return next year.
De Grisogono has exhibited once before and Boghossian, Nirav Modi and Cindy Chao are all newcomers. A committee selects the brands that will attend.
Despite the overarching de-emphasis on contemporary high jewelers, the participating brands have been making quite a splash on social media since the fair kicked off over the weekend.
De Grisogono debuted its Constellation Diamond, which was purchased earlier this year for $63 million. Lucara excavated the diamond from its Karowe mine in Botswana. The rough stone weighs in at 813 carats and De Grisogono expects the cutting process will yield one of the world’s largest faceted stones when it’s finished next year.
The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie partnered with the Biennale on one of three special exhibits at the fair, called The Mastery of Time, which showcases more than 100 artifacts and historic timepieces that explore the milestones in the evolution of telling time.
Here are a few of the Instagrams that best display the Parisian high jewelry moment.
@thejewellerycollectorsclub posted this shot of a butterfly brooch from Cindy Chao, which is on view at the Biennale.
Blogger Katerina Perez took over @BoghossianJewels’s Instagram account, posting this selfie with a fistful of rings.
@ChindyChao_ArtJewel gave her followers a glimpse of her booth’s display.
@DeGrisogono pulled out all the stops with its rough Constellation Diamond.
Maison @DeGrisogono shared a look at a diamond and ruby ring finished for the show.
Antique jewelry exhibitor @EpoqueFineJewels snapped this image of the Grand Palais ceiling.
The official Instagram account of the Biennale des Antiquaires, @LaBiennaleParis, shared this Nirav Modi ring in the weeks leading up to the fair.
Parisian antique jewelry exhibitor, @MartinduDaffoy, shot this stunning lariat.
@MartinduDaffoy also put this stunning emerald rock on my radar.
@Oligem75 posted a picture of this incredible fish brooch from Cindy Chao.
My favorite contemporary jewelry author @OlivierDupon posted a video of this Nirav Modi bib necklace that is definitely worth viewing.
The questionably named Instagram account @yo.momma.a.hucci at least pays tribute to a good jewel in this post of a De Grisogono necklace.
Also from @OlivierDupon this video of an articulated Nirav Modi cuff is not to be missed.
@FondationHH showed this snap of its The Mastery of Time exhibit.
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