The new jewelry brand Vivienne Charles founded by Elisa Gilbert is inspired by nature.
Jewelry with a long history: the American brand Vivienne Charles. A story that began in Paris in the 1930s with a young silversmith named Harold (Harry) Silberstein. He emigrated to New York, USA, where he changed his name from Silberstein to the more American Gilbert. His family includes Vivienne, a New York fashion illustrator, and Charles, a sculptor who studied at the High School of Music & Art and the Pratt Institute. They are the parents of Elisa Gilbert, who founded the Vivienne Charles brand, which recently launched its first collection: the Birds, Bees, and Things from the Sea Collection, handcrafted sculptural jewelry inspired by elements of nature.
Nature is something Elisa is very close to: a graduate of Cornell University with a degree in Music and Art, she works at her father’s old jewelry bench, in a workshop hidden in a cedar-paneled Balinese tea room in Tuxedo Park, New York. Her jewelry is inspired by the world of fauna and flora. Like the Celestial Serenade Pin, in 14-karat gold, diamonds, emerald, and Black Star sapphire, inspired by an encounter with a cricket ready to sing a nighttime concert. Or the Prince Charming Necklace, in gold over silver (vermeil), hand-dyed silk, and garnet, reminiscent of frogs on a large water lily leaf. Or the Moonlit Bee Pin/Pendant in 14-karat gold, diamonds, rubies, and moonstone, linked to an encounter with a bee.
