Sapphires… Emeralds… Rubies…sorry, just doing some visualization exercises, obsessing about The Art of Bulgari: La Dolce Vita & Beyond, 1950-1990, a 150-piece retrospective spanning over four decades on display at San Francisco’s de Young Museum. The exhibit opened last month and runs through February 17, 2014, showcasing the work of the Italian jewelry house which is primarily comprised of pieces flown in from the Bulgari Heritage Collection in Rome. Sketches and photographs are also included amongst gold necklaces that incorporate Byzantine coins, flower shaped brooch studded with diamonds, and bold colored gems encased in heavy gold.
The Art of Bulgari is a smaller version of a 2010 retrospective in Paris, and is timed to the 125th anniversary of the house that was founded in Rome in 1884 by the Greek-born Sotirios Boulgaris- the son of a silversmith who later changed his name to the more Italian sounding Bulgari. Constantly reinventing itself with fresh new designs distinguished Bulgari from other jewelers, and it was during the post-World War II economic boom where they became a leader in the field of jewelry design.
The shift by third generation family members in the 1970’s brought innovation, avant-garde designs, and pret-a-porter jewelry intended not just for grand occasions, but everyday wear…for the chic, of course. A new Diva collection inspired by Elizabeth Taylor, whose baubles influenced the 1960’s Hollywood decadence- think Sophia Loren and Ingrid Bergman- launched at Bulgari stores last month. Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but I would literally drape myself in all things Bulgari…if I could. And here I go obsessing again. www.deyoung.famsf.org
