The trailblazing Italian visionary Pino Rabolini set out to change the way women wore jewellery. While Pierre Cardin was giving women mini skirts and Arethra Franklin was demanding ‘Respect’, Rabolini who in 1967 founded Pomellato in Milan, was creating jewels that were unlike anything his grandmother had worn. Easy to wear, empowering and powerfully simple, these jewels made a statement about female independence in this heady new world where women were burning their bras and wearing flowers in their hair.
Rabolini’s influence is still felt at Pomellato and very much evident in the new La Gioia high jewellery collection launched this summer. Breaking conventions about what high jewellery should look like and how it is worn, this second edition of La Gioia puts women in the driving seat. Unfussy, bold and a breeze to slip on, La Gioia makes high jewellery so very enjoyable.
The Haiku necklace uses turquoise carved into a form resembling a Japanese coin that is also an off-centre closure with a jet t-bar combined with elements retrieved from the 1996 Moneta Giapponese collection and the 2008 Victoria collection. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
The collection is divided in two chapters. The first is the most audacious as it dares to do something that no high jewellery collection has done before. Rather than create new jewels from scratch, Pomellato’s open-minded designers took vintage pieces from the company safes and integrated them into new jewels. This has to be the ultimate up-cycling and a truly sustainable approach to luxury. Opulent 1970’s crucifixes, outsized 1980’s earrings and exotic cameo carvings all find new life in re-assembled jewels. Most of the jewels can be worn in more than one way with features that make them easily transformable giving maximum wear opportunities.
A fully-working padlock finds new life in this unisex, multifunctional jewel with an attitude that symbolises modern love. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
“The idea of this new LA GIOIA Collection came about during a conversation with American artist Sheva Fruitman,” said Vincenzo Castaldo, Creative Director at Pomellato. “We were thinking about sustainable development in the luxury industry, and she suggested using vintage jewellery in our new collections. We thought it was a very interesting idea, and that marked the beginning of this chapter in Pomellato’s history, consisting of selecting pieces from older collections. I used elements from our past as fragments of our memory, then anchored them in the present.”
A stunning 76.66 carats rubellite sits at the heart of this outsize Princess necklace that gives high jewellery a new, easy to wear look with two overlapping rose gold chains for a revamp of the medieval style of opulent gemstones in stark gold settings. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
The second chapter recycles in an abstract way as it uses Pomellato’s iconic chains to dream up hugely valuable jewels all based around the link. The combination of large, colourful stones with the house's iconic gold chains create stunning neo-Renaissance style necklaces. The jumbo cabochons of deep rich gemstones such as rubellite and tanzanite paired with outsize chains make for high jewellery with attitude.
Like all Pomellato's jewels, they are handmade in the firm's Milan workshops and entirely crafted from responsible gold and diamonds sourced from Responsible Jewellery Council certified sources.
A spectacular 48-carat cabochon-cut tanzanite sits at the centre of the Princess chain necklace. It took over 300 hours to create in Pomellato's Milan ateliers and is set with 2,379 white diamonds. La Gioia di Pomellato 2021.
Jet beads are combined with delicate rose gold and brown diamond charms - all from the early 2000’s – are strung on a silk tassel for an exotic look. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
A necklace composed of flattened links from 2002 has been given new life in a double bracelet. The large, facetted jet was from a Victoria collection pendant that provides a striking contrast to the diamond-set t-bar closure. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
Chubby stars set with moonstones and diamonds came from the 2014 Sirene collection and today are re-imagined into a dazzling pair of earrings. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
A fully-working padlock finds new life in this unisex, multifunctional jewel with an attitude that symbolises modern love. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
Classic cameos meet aquamarines in these intriguing earrings that bring a twist to a favourite Italian jewellery staple. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
Chains are at the very heart of the Pomellato style and over the past five decades this Milanese jeweller has elevated the humble link to a key feature in the Catene high jewellery collection. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
A stunning 76.66 carats rubellite sits at the heart of this outsize Princess necklace that gives high jewellery a new, easy to wear look with two overlapping rose gold chains for a revamp of the medieval style of opulent gemstones in stark gold settings. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
The Haiku necklace uses turquoise carved into a form resembling a Japanese coin that is also an off-centre closure with a jet t-bar combined with elements retrieved from the 1996 Moneta Giapponese collection and the 2008 Victoria collection. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
The red Tourmaline Princess necklace is composed of rose gold links with a pavé of brown diamonds and a 58.5-carat raspberry tourmaline. The supple drop earrings are adorned with tear drops of cherry tourmalines. LA GIOIA di Pomellato 2021
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After many years as a freelance journalist and editor specialising in watches and jewellery, together with Christine Pasquier, Maria founded The Jewellery Editor. Maria’s work appears in a wide variety of notable publications, including the Financial Times, Intelligent Life, Telegraph ...
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