The DAM is hosting a world-exclusive exhibition of
Brilliant: Cartier in the 20th Century,
featuring stunning jewelry, timepieces, and precious objects created
between 1900 and 1975. Since we are members, we decided to go on a member Monday to check it out! Forewarning...there will be loads of photos...and if you plan on going, beware of spoilers!
This is the first display you see when you walk into the exhibit and it is absolutely breathtaking! The photo does not do it justice, but these diamonds glowed and sparkled from across the room. The piece across the breast had little twisted leaves and the detail was spectacular!
Both of these crowns were gorgeous, and i accidentally left my nose print on the glass as i tried to get as close up as possible to take it all in. Funny thing about that is its obvious im not the only one, since they have an employee that walks around the entire exhibit all day with windex in hand, just to clean the display cases. She laughed and said it happens all day long!
In the early 1900's pearls were more valuable than diamonds, so jewelry with pearls in them were highly sought after. In fact it is rumored that the Cartier building in New York was purchased with two strands of pearls. The vine work on this crown is actually black onyx, making it a very unique piece.
These three brooches were very contemporary in design for the time and they represent early art deco, which would explain why i like them so much.
This ribbon brooch was one of my favorite pieces in the exhibit...so delicate and lovely...it truly looked like a ribbon.
This bracelet was one of Christys favorites, and i have to admit, i loved it too. It was so incredibly shiny that it was hard to photograph, but this shot does it some justice! Be sure to click on the images to get a full size glimpse of each piece.
The exhibit was laid out in chronological order as well as keeping with styles and times. There was an India, Egypt and Asian room, as well as an Art of Smoking area and Men's Design section. Each one as amazing as the next. The exhibit was so well done, the attention to detail exhibiting the pieces and decorating the rooms was lovely! The Denver Art Museum really outdid themselves with this show.
Included alongside many pieces were their original sketches and designs, which were almost as lovely as the pieces themselves.
The discovery of King Tut's tomb brought a new found fascination with Egypt and all its treasures, and Egyptian revival began. Cartier
designers tried to emulate the Egyptian style by using similar stones
and materials the Egyptians would have used. (with a Cartier flair of
course)
In fact he often used Egyptian antiquities combined with his designs to create something new like this blue scarab with wings.
There were several vanity cases in the exhibit too...but this one was my favorite! The mother of pearl and onxy stripes on the back are really striking and the design itself of the panther is beautiful too! The mini lipsticks that came with these cases were also created by Cartier.
There were many clocks on display, but the mystery clocks fascinated me most! I included the information here so you can learn how they work, but another thing i found interesting was that it could take up to a year to complete just one mystery clock...and i can see why!
Celebrities and socialites were often adorned with Cartier jewelry, and they often worked with designers to commission personal pieces too. Sometimes they even brought their own stones to work with. Actors would often wear their personal jewelry in movies too.
"All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard. :)
This simple design was made for Marlene Dietrich, and if you look closely, you can see the engraving.
Many of the displays had images of the celebrities wearing the items,
which was fun to see how they looked on them. This particular chunky
emerald necklace of Oberon's was ginormous hanging around her neck, and
it was lovely!
This colorful style of jewelry was called Tutti Fruiti, and i loved it! All the gems combined together with carvings within some of the stones, made the jewelry very playful and fun! Even the detail of the string tassel clasp is lovely!
Daisy Fellowes also had a beautiful Tutti Fruiti necklace in her display case!
This bird brooch is almost 6 inches long, and the colorful sparkles that gleamed off of this bird were amazing!
In the middle of the exhibit there was a section with several desks like this one...each one sharing how a particular part of the design process was done. In this station, Jordyn is learning about metal polishing. There was also a design station, a stone cutting and polishing station and a casting station. (Cartier makes casts of all of its designs).
Another neat thing we learned was that no one knew where the designers lived, because they would take the stones home and work on them in their own studios, so no one new their addresses to prevent theft.
This leopard bracelet was very pretty! The tail actually wraps around the wrist and clasps in the paw and the head was made to swivel left or right.
I liked the combination of stones in this necklace, you dont usually see amethyst and turquoise together, but they compliment each other well. It also looks even prettier in the photo on the Duchess.
These next two pieces are from the Palais Princier de Monaco collection and they were once worn by Grace Kelly.
The engagement ring was so sparkly that it was difficult to photograph, so this was the best i could do. But you get to see a few other pieces from the Monaco collection in this photo as well :)
These are photographs of the Cartier storefront after the historic moon landing!
Each of the Apollo 11 astronauts were given one of these replicas, however, it is reported that one of the models is badly damaged because the astronaut let his kids play with it :) They didnt say which astronaut though!
These alligators could be displayed separately or together as a necklace. The two crocodile bodies were made of gold, one covered with 1,023 yellow diamonds, while the
other was adorned with 1,060 circular cut emeralds. This piece along with the snake necklace were commisioned by the famous Mexican actress and jewelry connoisseur, Maria Felix.
This completely articulated serpent is made out of platinum and white gold and is encrusted with 178.21 carats of diamonds. WOW!
And here we are in the gift shop showing off our rings that Jordyn picked out for us! What a fantastic show!!!
Cartier Jewelers do not use computers in any of their design process.
Everything is done by hand, just like it was 100 years ago, making them
unique to most designers today. Their dedication and skill and
techniques make their jewelry true works of art! When i first came to
this exhibit, i knew it would be fun, but i really didnt think it would
overwhelm me the way it did! This was an extraordinary show!
After our museum adventures we always pop in to Pints Pub for some lunch and cocktails! We love this place...the atmosphere is cozy and the food is great! The bloody mary's arent too shabby either :)
It was an incredibly cold day, but we had a blast! It was BRILLIANT! :)
