Dover Street Market
Buying a vintage jewel on auction at Sotheby’s, hand chosen by those that have spent fifteen years deciding which emerging fashion brands would be successful. Today, it is happening in London. Tomorrow, Tokyo or L.A.?
A department store like this could have only opened in Mayfair in the heart of cool London. “Made in England” but with a decidedly international soul. It was founded in 2004 by Rei Kawakubo, the fashion designer who also founded the Comme des Garçons brand. This visionary wanted to make a department store that highlighted all forms of creativity. And this is exactly what happened thanks to the immediate popularity of the DSM format, which today has other glamorous locations: in Ginza, in 1 the heart of Tokyo, as well as in Singapore, Beijing and Los Angeles, not to mention the store in New York. It has been fifteen years of grandiose projects one after the other, up through this December when the London outpost announced a special partnership with none other than Sotheby’s to hold a series of fine-jewelry auctions. Mimi Hoppen, Director of Jewellery for DSM said «We selected the jewelry in the same way that we do from contemporary designers and collections. We look for unique, beautifully designed jewelry with something to say. Individuality and craftsmanship is always important. The only difference is that so many of these pieces came with fascinating stories, for example the pocket watch given to Ginger Rogers by Fred Astaire.» The idea behind this “experiment,” which seems to be paving the way for a new path, is summed up by Laurence Nicolas, Global Managing Director of Sotheby’s Jewellery & Watches Divisions: «A young, high-spirited generation has come to rediscover the power of vintage jewels and wear them with the boldest looks, often seduced by the great craftsmanship, fine materials and extraordinary stories the pieces carry. And these young people are part of the DSM generation.»
