Bulgari queen of San Francisco: an exhibition is dedicated to the Italian fashion house, now under the banner of LVMH, in the Californian city. “The Art of Bulgari: La Dolce Vita & Beyond, 1950-1990”, collects 147 historical pieces of jewelry. It will run until February 17, 2014 and showcases the work of the Italian jewelery house over a span of four decades. A period that includes two crucial moments for Bulgari: the post-World War II period and that of the economic boom, in which Roman jewelery became a leader in the field of jewelery design, until the third generation and the Seventies, with the avant-garde and pret-a-porter jewels, not only for special occasions, but for every day.
The exhibition is a slightly scaled-down version of a retrospective organized in 2010 in Paris, at the time of the 125th anniversary of the house, which was founded in Rome in 1884 by the Greek-born jeweler Sotirios Boulgaris. The son of a silversmith, Boulgaris later Italianized his surname to Bulgari.
From 1950 to 1990 Bulgari’s style became unparalleled, with the use of cabochon (rounded, not faceted) gems; the unusual color combinations (such as the turquoise, amethyst and emerald of the necklace owned by Lyn Revson, wife of the Revlon magnate, Charles Revson) and, later, with the heavy gold chains and the modular Parentesi line, inspired at the joints of Roman sidewalks
“ Bulgari was constantly able to reinvent itself with new designs, which stood out from those of other jewelers, particularly in Paris, ” is the comment of the curator of the exhibition, Martin Chapman. A style that emerged with the post-war boom in Italy, when Hollywood on the Tiber, Cinecittà films were all the rage, and film stars like Elizabeth Taylor were circulating. And then it continued with more affordable lines after 1970, when the oil crisis hit incomes. Bulgari then developed new marketing strategies, such as expanding with its own boutique in New York, and responded to the boom period of the 1980s with very suggestive chokers, set with large precious stones. Bulgari’s rounded stones seemed in sync with the feminine curves of the period, from Sophia Loren to Gina Lollobrigida.
The exhibition, which includes photos, videos and interactive materials, also brings together seven pieces that were owned by Elizabeth Taylor. The exhibition also serves as a communication plan for the launch of the new Diva collection, inspired by Taylor’s jewellery, which BUlgari will launch in the next few days.
