Costume jewellery is a fascinating field for fashion aficionados and collectors. Back in the 1930s Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli explored the creative possibilities of artistic jewels and, by the 1950s, American celebrities ensured that “non-fine jewellery” became highly desirable. This selling exhibition is inspired by a lady called Nina who was British, lived in Columbia until the 1950s, then trained as a couture designer in New York. Nina lived all over the world and we see her deep interest in cultural heritage in the pieces she collected. A magpie with an artist’s eye, Nina alighted on a wide range of stylish opportunities from African coffee bean necklaces to Christian Lacroix earrings and Christian Dior brooches.
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