Lalique Necklace for the 1890s

Loretta reports:

Ren� Lalique might be familiar to most of us for his beautiful glass work. However, as we�ve shown before, this artist designed jewelry to the same high standard.

I�ve visited the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts several times, and wandered in a sort of ecstatic trance through the Art Nouveau and Art Deco collection. But the museum offers so much that I can always count on finding a  remarkable something I somehow overlooked or hadn't time to study previously.
This ca. 1897 Lalique necklace, one of numerous stunning gifts from Sydney and Frances Lewis,

is late 19th century (earlier than the collar linked to above). I think it�s a wonderful example of the work created during the Belle �poque.

Here again is the Art Nouveau emphasis on natural forms, with a rather sparing use of gemstones�emphasis on art and design, in other words, rather than sparkle. It may also  owe something to ancient styles of jewelry I�ve seen in museums�it reminded me of necklaces found in ancient Egyptian tombs.

Pomegranate

You can see a sharper image, and zoom in, here, on the museum website.

For more on Lalique, you might want to check out this past exhibition at the Corning Museum.

Necklace & description card photographed by me.
Botanical print of pomegranate from Prof. Dr. Otto Wilhelm Thom� Flora von Deutschland, �sterreich und der Schweiz, 1885, Gera, Germany via Wikipedia.

Clicking on the image will enlarge it.  Clicking on the caption will take you to the source, where you can learn more and enlarge images as needed.

Those Tiny 1890s Waists & What Adorned Them

Loretta reports:

Following up a little on the Belle �poque video�

My most recent trip to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts had me taking a closer look at the Kreuzer collection of belt buckles from the late 19th & early 20th centuries and, in particular, information about the collection. The printed placard offers a good example of the difference between engraved images of fashion and real people wearing them. I think this contrast is pretty stark, and it would be more so if these weren�t models but average women, who would probably be a bit more full-figured. Then, as always, models tended to represent a fashionable ideal rather than reality, though not as extremely as the images on the catalog page.

Previously I�ve posted a garnet belt buckle as well as other objects from the VMFA�s outstanding collection, including sporting prints, Art Nouveau furniture, Art Nouveau & Art Deco jewelry (here and here), and decorative objects. These are only small samples of the offerings. The VMFA is a splendid museum, well worth a visit�or several.

Please click on images to enlarge.