This document provides information on five jewelry and art exhibitions around the world: 1) SerpentiForm at the Museum of Rome, featuring Bulgari jewelry and works of art inspired by snakes. 2) Turquoise Mountain at the Smithsonian Institution, showcasing jewelry made through a charity program in Afghanistan. 3) The Amrapali Museum of Jewelry and Art in Jaipur, India, housing the company's collection and pieces that inspired their designs. 4) The Art and Science of Gems at the ArtScience Museum in Singapore, pairing Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry with geological specimens. 5) Exhibitions of works by photographers Daido Moriyama

1. reveal / the bling thing rexxxx / xxxxxx
For gems that have added meaning and ornaments that wow,
there are only a handful of exclusive global destinations that
combine the best of art and jewellery, writesMING LIU
ARTFUL
SPARKLES
176_#legend_March 2016 March 2016_#legend_177
ashion and the artsare
symbioticcreaturesand
lastyearhaditsshareof
blockbustershowsthat
linkedboth.Thehighly
praisedMetropolitan
MuseumofArt’sChina:
ThroughtheLooking
Glassexhibitionin
NewYorksetthesceneforthestar-studded
CostumeInstituteGalaanditsjuxtaposition
ofhighfashionthroughtheageswithexquisite
Chineseantiques,ceramicsandpaintings.
TheLouisVuittonSerieshaditslatest
iterationinLondonlastSeptember,afterstops
inShanghai,Tokyo,LosAngelesandRome.
Theeventcelebratedtheinfluenceofdesigner
NicolasGhesquière.
Itseemsthatsuperiorjewellersarehopping
ontheartbandwagonthisyear,puttingon
innovativeexhibitionsthatexplainhow
jewellery,itsaestheticsandrichheritage,
areshapedbyart.Asweseeit,therearefive
exhibitionsyouwillnotwanttomiss.
Left: Pouf Serpent Jaune by
Niki de Saint Phalle
Right: Her Body, Her Nation
2014-15 by Farhad Ahrarnia
SerpentiForm–Rome
ThismultifacetedshowbyveneratedItalian
jewellerBulgariissettobeatruefeastfor
allsenses.Snakeshavelongbeenpowerful
symbols,beingconsideredtalismansinancient
RomeandAfrica,andastheharbingers
offertilityandimmoralityinAsia.Bulgari
wasfirststruckbytheserpentinthe1940s,
interpretingthesymbolinalineofbracelet
watches.SerpentiFormisabeautifullook
atthisever-evocativecreature,andspans
theancienttomodernwhileembracinga
hostofartforms:contemporaryart,design,
photography,illustrationandfashion.
KeithHaring,NikideSaintPhalle,
AlexanderCalderandPaulKleearebuta
fewofartistswhoseworkisonshow,their
expressionsoftheophidianrunningthegamut
fromtheironicaltothedreamilyabstract.
FurtherjazzinguptheshowareItalian
vintagefashiondesignsandfilmcostumes.
Fashionistasmightwanttomakeabeeline
fortheoutfitswornbyElizabethTaylorin
Cleopatra.RarejewelsfromPompeii,onloan
F
frommuseumsofarchaeologyinTaranto
andNaples,addanantiquetouch.Ofcourse
thereisalsotheshow-stoppingcentrepieceof
exquisiteSerpentijewelsfromBulgari’svaults.
March10toApril10attheMuseumofRome
PHOTOS_GIULIOPIETROMARCHI(LEFT)_LAWRIESHABIBI

2. reveal / the bling thing
TurquoiseMountain–Washington
EstablishedattherequestofCharles,the
PrinceofWales,andAfghanistan’sformer
presidentHamidKarzai,TurquoiseMountain
isapioneeringcharitythathasbeenreviving
Afghanistan’srichculturalheritageforthepast
decade.Developingskillsisattheheartofits
mission,asittrainsanewgenerationofartisans
intraditionalcraftssuchaswoodworking,
miniaturepainting,carpetweaving,ceramics,
jewelleryandgemcutting.Aselectionofthe
outstandingworkcomingoutofthisground-
breakingprogrammewillheadtoWashington
inMarch,wheretheSmithsonianInstitution
willhostTurquoiseMountain:Artists
TransformingAfghanistan.
Showingoffthecharity’sachievements
intherealmofjewellerywillbeastunning
emeraldpiece.Theexhibitwasjointlycrafted
byPippaSmall,theBritishjewellerknown
forherethicalworkandorganicdesigns,and
Saeeda,aTurquoiseMountaingraduatewho
isdeaf.
Thecollaborationisreminiscentof
theworkSmallhasdonewithartisansin
developingcountrieswhichwonheranMBE
in2013.SaeedaandSmall’screation,made
intheTurquoiseMountainworkshopin
Kabul,comprisessome200emeralds–stones
whicharefoundinAfghanistanandhavea
deepsymbolicimportance.Atthebackof
theamulet-inspiredpieceisacaseofthetype
traditionallyusedforholdingwrittenprayers
orkeepsakes.Forthedurationoftheexhibition
itwillholdsoilfromKabul.AfilmbySaeeda
enrichesthetalebehindthiswonderfullyone-
offpiece.
March5toJanuary29,2017,intheFreerand
SacklerGalleriesofArtintheSmithsonian
Institution,Washington
Above: Conceptualising
jewellery designs
Far left: A delicate
necklace by Turquoise
Mountain
Left: Pippa Small and
Saeeda
178_#legend_March 2016
AmrapaliMuseumofJewelleryand
Art–Jaipur
AmrapaliisIndia’sbiggestjewellerbutthe
Rajasthanhouse’sexceptionaldesignsare
currentlymakingbigwavesinternationally.
Thecompanyisnotyet40yearsoldand
createsvintage-inspired,yetcoollymodern,
pieceswithacombinationofexquisite
craftsmanshipandtraditionalskills.In
Amrapali’scase,alloozeadistinctiveAsian
aesthetic.Thehouse,afterall,isnamedafter
alegendaryroyalcourtesan,famousforher
extraordinarybeautyandcharm.
Amrapali’sfoundersaretheembodiment
ofthehouse’sapproach.RajivAroraand
RajeshAjmerawerehistorystudentsstruck
bywanderlustinthelate1970s,whosetoffto
travelthecountry,pickinguppiecesofIndian
heritagealongtheway.Theirdiscoveries
andinspirationswouldeventuallyleadto
themmakingjewellery,butnotbeforethey
hadamassedsome3,000antiquesthatare
nowhousedinanewmuseumbuiltbeside
Amrapali’sheadquartersinJaipur.
Themuseumisthefirstofitskindinthe
Indiangemcapital.Itdisplaysnotonlythe
jaw-droppingpiecesfromAmrapali’svaults
butalsothewonderfulheritagethatinspired
them.Forexample,acollectionofshivlingam
carriers,customarilywornlikenecklacesby
theLingayatpeopleofKarnataka,willbe
ondisplay.Raremango-shapedcontainers
forlime,snuffandperfumealsoformpartof
theshow.Oneexhibitthatstandsoutisthe
remarkablesilvercrownthatadornedastatue
oftheLordKrishna.
CurrentlyopenatAmrapali,Jaipur
Left: Tarang Arora, the son of
Amrapali’s co-founder, Rajiv Arora
Above: An intricate necklace and
earrings set by Amrapali
March 2016_#legend_179

3. reveal / the bling thing
TheArtandScienceofGems–Singapore
Jewellery-makingisasmuchgeoscienceas
craft,soit’sfittingthatSingapore’sArtScience
Museumshouldbehometoanexcitingnew
exhibitionofVanCleef&Arpelspieces,shown
alongsidegeologicaltreasuresfromFrance.
TheArtandScienceofGemsexhibition
willshowmorethan400piecesfromthe
VanCleef&Arpelsheritagecollection,with
selecteditemsfromprivatecollectors.The
showfollowstheseventhemesofcouture;
abstractions,influences,preciousobjects,
nature,ballerinas,andfairiesandicons.
Abolddiamondbraceletfrom1925
illustratestheearlyforaybyVanCleef&
Arpelsintoartdeco.Otherpiecestellofthe
house’slegendarypatrons,includingnewlywed
Europeanroyalty,Indianmaharajas,American
socialites.Stillotherstellofthedancersthat
servedasmusesforthecreatorsoftheballerina
clipsofthe1940s.
Thenarrativeofthejewellery,desk
clocks,pocketwatchesandlacqueroryellow
goldMinaudièrebagsisenrichedby250
raremineralsandgemsfromtheNational
MuseumofNaturalHistoryinParis.Like
theexhibitsfromVanCleef&Arpels,
thegeologicaltreasuresaredisplayedin
accordancewithseventhemes:pressure,
temperature,transport,water,oxygen,lifeand
metamorphism.
Thehighlightsofthejewelleryonshow
includea1970sgoldclipandpendantofabird
carryingabriolette-cut96.62-caratyellow
diamondthatbelongedtothePolishopera
singerGannaWalska.Itisadornedwith
emeralds,sapphires,andyellowandwhite
diamonds.Thepieceisalsoingenious:itcan
beturnedintoapairofwingedearringsanda
brooch.Similarly,aplatinumandgold1950s
Zipcouturenecklacewithdiamondandrubies,
conceivedbytheDuchessofWindsor,hasa
functioningzipper,whichallowsthepieceto
betransformedintoabracelet.#
FromApril23toAugust14attheArtScience
Museum,Singapore
Top: Bouquet clip, 1940
Above: Passe Partout jewel, 1939
Right: Bird clip and pendant, 1971-1972,
all by Patrick Gries
March 2016_#legend_181
DaidoTokyoandCaliClair-Obscur–Paris
CelebratedjewellerandwatchmakerCartier
establishedtheFondationCartierpourl’Art
Contemporainin1984,andtodaythenon-
profitfoundationoccupiesaJeanNouvel-
designedmuseuminthe14tharrondissement
inParis.Thefoundationhasheldmorethan
100exhibitionsandcommissionedmore
than1,000worksofcontemporaryartfroma
diverseandimpressiverangeofartists.Marc
Couturier,FabriceHybert,CaiGuo-Qiang,
WilliamEggleston,SarahSze,WimDelvoye,
GaryHillandDavidLyncharejustsomeofthe
namesontheroster.
TwoexhibitionsrunninguntilJunewill
beatreatforloversofcontemporaryart,
particularlyaficionadosofphotography.One
showsalargeselectionofworkbyJapanese
photographerDaidoMoriyama.Moriyama
beganbycapturingapost-SecondWorld
WarJapancaughtbetweentraditionand
modernity,beforemovingontomoreavant-
gardestreetphotography.Moriyamaisno
strangertothefoundation,whichputonits
firstexhibitionofhisworkin2003.
Thenewexhibition,calledDaidoTokyo,
featurescolourphotographsfromthepast
twodecadesthatwillbefamiliartoMoriyama
fans,theworkencompassingkitscherotica
andseductivenocturnalpanoramas.Also
familiarwillbetheblack-and-whiteimagesin
DogandMeshTights,animmersivemultiscreen
projectioncommissionedbythefoundation.
Theworkingeniouslybringsmodernlifeinto
striking,frankfocus.
ComplementingtheMoriyamaexhibition
isashowoftheworkofanotherurban
photographer,FernellFranco.The140
photographsfrom10differentseriestaken
between1970and1996haveneverbefore
beenseeninEurope.Francolivedamidthe
povertyofCaliinColombia,workingasa
photojournalistforElPaisandDiarioOccidente,
snappingsubjectsasdiverseasurbanuprisings,
massacresinthecountrysideandcocktail
partiesthrownbyCali’selite.IntheCali
Clair-Obscurexhibition,curatorsAlexisFabry
andMariaWillsLondoñopresent26yearsof
Franco’swork,demonstratingthefullrange
ofhistalents,fromconveyingserenityinhis
landscapestoconveyingmenace,almost,inhis
SérieBillaresportraits.
BothuntilJune5attheFondationCartierpour
l’ArtContemporain,Paris
Top: Daido Moriyama, Tokyo Color, 2008-2015
Above: Fernell Franco Série Interiores, 1978
180_#legend_March 2016
PHOTOS_DAIDOMORIYAMAPHOTOFOUNDATION(TOP)_FUNDACIONFERNELLFRANCOCALITOLUCAFINEART,PARIS