Jewelry That Fuels the Sphere of Our Desires
How and why jewelry reveals the dreams, values, and aspirations of contemporary society
We see celebrities on the red carpet, actors in the TV series, musicians who make the stage vibrate, influencers on social media who show us their perfect lives. We dream. To be like them, to have what they have. We see ourselves in that way of being in the world. We would like to become the ideal projection of ourselves that they seem to embody. Ultimately, we aspire to what we feel should be ours, what we don’t have. This often leads to the birth of a desire. Even for a jewel. An accessory that speaks to us and that speaks about us. Which we would really like to have. Either in the original or a copy, it makes no difference.
Olivia Rodrigo wearing the Pavé Hoop earrings by Christina Caruso; Katy Perry wearing the Signet ring by Christina Caruso.
The Bone cuff by Tiffany & Co., designed by Elsa Peretti in the Seventies, falls into this category of desires. Its organic lines, inspired by the human body, made it a cult: Liza Minnelli wore two, one on each forearm. We now see it on the wrists of Naomi Watts, Margot Robbie, Beyoncé. Always the same, always different.
Cardi B wearing custom Pearl Raindrop choker and cuffs for the Met Gala 2023 by Anabela Chan Joaillerie; Beyoncé wearing the titanium and gold Emerald Cupid's Bow earrings by Anabela Chan Joaillerie.
Its fate is similar to that of other iconic jewels: the “Love” and Juste un Clou bracelets by Cartier, the pieces with the Alhambra motif by Van Cleef & Arpels, the snake-shaped jewels from the Bvlgari Serpenti collection, the Ice Cube by Chopard. Born as experiments in shape, they are among the most coveted and imitated creations of all time. Where does their iconicity come from? From the meeting between genius, art, culture, craftsmanship and historical memory. And the big companies have a clear advantage in this regard: immense archives, full of sketches, prototypes, samples of materials and creative annotations that constantly feed their aesthetic heritage, allowing it to be reinterpreted in the present and keeping the desire for their jewels alive.Nowadays, however, a new generation of independent designers is fueling the sphere of our desires with creations destined to become the must-haves of the future. Their charm comes from the intention behind them: empowerment, sustainability, solidarity. When celebrities who share the same values wear them, they amplify their meaning and make them desirable to an increasingly wider audience. It is this virtuous circle that produces their iconicity. Designer Anabela Chan explains her work as follows: «We innovate by combining ancient traditional techniques with modern ideas and technologies. It's about learning from the past to offer a different perspective in the present, with an eye always on a better future.»
Lisa wearing a full gold and precious gems Serpenti High Jewelry set by Bvlgari.
Yellow gold and diamond Sonny MX and Sonny YG rings by Spinelli Kilcollin
Beyoncé, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Taylor Swift have made her jewelry popular, giving visibility and strength to a circular design that combines lab-grown gemstones and recycled metals. Marie Lichtenberg, defined as the "It Girl" of jewelry, conquered everyone with her “Love Lockets”, precious padlocks brimming with symbolism, which immediately became viral and imitated. To protect the original design, she created “Raiz'in”, an accessible line whose proceeds were donated to charity. Sophie Bille Brahe fascinates stars like Gwyneth Paltrow, Katie Holmes, Keira Knightley and Natalie Portman with her Scandinavian minimalist aesthetic, while Ana Khouri is loved for her sculptural pieces, authentic works of wearable art.
Doechii wearing the Bezel Set Shell earring and Triple Cuff by Christina Caruso; Keke Palmer wearing the Heritage earring by Christina Caruso.
The cross-cultural creations of ITÄ Jewelry are also highly coveted, as are those by Christina Caruso: bold and glamorous, designed to be handed down, always in the name of sustainability and female empowerment. In just a few years, Spinelli Kilcollin created a design that is already iconic: its transformable rings, defined by journalist Selby Drummond as “a phenomenon never seen before”, can be worn individually, overlapped on one finger, or distributed over several fingers, offering infinite combination possibilities. New icons for a transforming society, increasingly connected to values such as ethics, solidarity, tolerance, equality, freedom, respect, responsibility and sustainability. Values which, we hope, will totally shape every future desire.
