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The Duke of Verdura is the most talented jeweler of the 20th century and it all started when Coco Chanel invited Verdura to design jewellery. At Chanel, Verdura’s most notable creation was a Maltese-cross bracelet.
Chanel’s point of view was that a woman should wear both fake and real gems. “I find it disgraceful to walk around with millions around your neck just because you are rich, “ she said, “The point of jewellery isn’t to make a woman look rich but to adorn her; not the same thing.”
For Landrigan, who bought the Verdura business in 1985, seven years after the designer's death, one of the most appealing facets of his work was its rejection of mass-production and commercialism.
"Verdura was not interested in publicity," he said. "Unlike most jewelers he had no commercial bent and created very personal jewelry for his friends, a list of whom read like a 'Who's Who' of the Western world.
"Most of his work was not done to impress people, but rather to flatter the woman wearing it. He made brooches in the form of pomegranates, eggplants, onions, pinecones, camels, mice, and all manner of things not associated with jewelry."
"The great thing about Verdura is that there simply is less of it, which should, officially, make it more valuable," she said. "Owning a piece of Verdura is a little like having an elite club membership: Once bitten, forever smitten." "You're not just buying stones, you're buying taste."
Chanel’s point of view was that a woman should wear both fake and real gems. “I find it disgraceful to walk around with millions around your neck just because you are rich, “ she said, “The point of jewellery isn’t to make a woman look rich but to adorn her; not the same thing.”
For Landrigan, who bought the Verdura business in 1985, seven years after the designer's death, one of the most appealing facets of his work was its rejection of mass-production and commercialism.
"Verdura was not interested in publicity," he said. "Unlike most jewelers he had no commercial bent and created very personal jewelry for his friends, a list of whom read like a 'Who's Who' of the Western world.
"Most of his work was not done to impress people, but rather to flatter the woman wearing it. He made brooches in the form of pomegranates, eggplants, onions, pinecones, camels, mice, and all manner of things not associated with jewelry."
"The great thing about Verdura is that there simply is less of it, which should, officially, make it more valuable," she said. "Owning a piece of Verdura is a little like having an elite club membership: Once bitten, forever smitten." "You're not just buying stones, you're buying taste."
His designs were worn by iconic women of taste from the 30s to the 70s including Joan Crawford; Princess Diana; Doris Duke; Katharine Hepburn; Nan Kempner and Greta Garbo.
From The New York Times
To my Book List :
Verdura: The Life and Work of a Master Jeweler
by Patricia Corbett, Amy Fine Collins
From The New York Times
To my Book List :
Verdura: The Life and Work of a Master Jeweler
by Patricia Corbett, Amy Fine Collins
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