To lose yourself in the glossy pages of a jewellery book is a delight. For a fraction of the price, you can pore over the intimate details of the most beautiful objects ever created and get under the skin of its creator. For jewellery dreamers, here are the latest books that guarantee a flight to gem bliss, if only for a fleeting hour or two.
Winged Beauty, The Butterfly Jewellery Art of Wallace Chan
An absolute must for the library of any jewellery lover, butterfly fan, art connoisseur or sensitive soul who will swoon at the sublime beauty of Wallace Chan’s impossible creations. With photography nearly as good as your own eyes and writing that reveals Wallace Chan’s inspiring world view, this book will set hearts fluttering and many sighing. The different authors (Melanie Grant, Vanessa Cron, Emily Stoehrer, Juliet Weir-de La Rochefoucauld and Ming Liu) look at Wallace Chan’s place in art and jewellery history, the symbolism of butterflies as well as the myriad breath-taking techniques this master extraordinaire has developed to bring us brooches like we have never seen before. This book captures the brilliance of Wallace Chan and his visionary creations that you can revisit time and time again.
Fabergé in London: Romance to Revolution
This book accompanies the V&A exhibition of the same name that runs until 8 May 2022 curated by Fabergé expert Kieran McCarthy and Hanne Faurby . As one of the most important Fabergé exhibitions of our generation with the largest display of dazzling Imperial Easter Eggs ever seen in one place, if you missed the show, the book will be a fine consolation prize. Unlike other Fabergé shows, this one focusses on the Russian firm’s London outpost and its extraordinarily eclectic commissions. The 200 objects on display documented in the book offer a tantalising insight into the whims and fancies of the wealthiest consumers at the turn of the C20th. The curators Kieran McCarthy and Hanne Faurby say: ‘The story of Carl Fabergé, the legendary Russian Imperial goldsmith, is one of supreme luxury and unsurpassed craftsmanship. Celebrating Fabergé’s extraordinary achievements, this exhibition focuses on the over-looked importance of his London branch, the only one outside of Russia.’
‘Sapphire’ is the third in Joanna Hardy’s collection that adds to ‘Ruby’ and ‘Emerald’. Like the first two books, ‘Sapphire’ is the definitive publication on the topic and a deep immersion into the world of these noble blue gemstones. As a gemmologist and art historian with experience from around the world, Hardy’s vivacious style brings to life the characteristics, history, myths and greatest creations made from sapphires. The extensive research in this outsize format along with the number and quality of photographs make these books collector’s items in their own right and one that no gem library will be without. No doubt Hardy’s trio of volumes will be on every gem-hound’s wish list - along with shelves strong enough to support these weighty tomes. A fail-proof gift for jewellery and gem fans just in time for Christmas.
Cartier and Islamic Art In Search of Modernity
As elegant as the topic itself, Cartier and Islamic Art is a fascinating lens through which to view this prolific era of enriching and enduring cross-cultural influences. The narrative begins with an analysis of Islamic Art's ‘deep and structural imprint on Cartier’s style’ by the French firm’s Image and Style director Pierre Rainero and then continues to explore how Islam made Cartier a beacon of modernity and its many influences from abstraction to architecture and use of colour. Absorb the in-depth research on this fascinating topic or merely feast your eyes on this bonanza of beautiful objects to be found in this book.
