An inside look at the legacy of Elsa Peretti and her relationship with Tiffany & Co.

A true visionary artisan, Elsa Peretti revolutionised the world of jewellery design with her aesthetic genius and consistent pursuit of perfection. It all started when Peretti picked a bud vase from a flea market and rendered it in sterling silver—the creation made its runway debut as a necklace for designer Giorgio de Sant’Angelo in1969. She went on to challenge the status quo and democratise materials through her historic collaborations with Tiffany & Co., starting in 1974. She inspired women to wear diamonds everyday and for every occasion, elevated the status of sterling silver to luxury, and projected her organic, feminine, and talismanic symbols as icons of female empowerment. 

 

 

Throughout Tiffany & Co.’s storied history of collaborating with designers and artists, Peretti stood apart. Her passion for nature, combined with her unique sensibility and skill, yielded iconic collections including Bone, Diamonds by the Yard, Open Heart, Bean design, Bottle and Snake, all of which remain as relevant and contemporary today as they were when first introduced. The designer’s creative vocabulary expanded to refined objects of desire. In the early 1980s, her collections for Tiffany included designs for home made of china, crystal and sterling silver. As an embodiment of her beliefs that beauty and utility should always be as one, the collections for home included Thumbprint, Padova, Bone and Teardrop—Peretti elevated everyday objects into sculptural design statements. Like her jewellery, these designs were revered for their fluid shape and tactile quality. She said, “Touch is important. I get lots of my inspiration from tactile things.”

 

 

Peretti went on to receive several accolades, including the 1971 Coty Award for Jewelry, followed by the Rhode Island School of Design President’s Fellow Award in 1981. The Council of Fashion Designers of America named her Accessory Designer of the Year in 1996. As a recognition of her remarkable career, Tiffany established the Elsa Peretti Professorship in Jewelry Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in 1999 in New York City. In 2001, the designer was presented with an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from FIT. The Elsa Peretti jewellery case at the House’s Fifth Avenue flagship store was designated a Tiffany landmark. She was honoured with the Leonardo da Vinci Lifetime Achievement Award for Jewelry and Fashion Design in 2001, among others. 

 

 

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Peretti’s arrival at Tiffany & Co. and their enduring collaborations ever since. Through the course of her association with the House, the designer challenged the perceived notions of jewellery, and her inimitable creations have been revered by the world. Her expansive body of work etched the legacy of Tiffany and it is indisputable that she remains one of the most successful jewellery designers of all time. President and CEO, Tiffany & Co., Anthony Ledru shares, “Elsa Peretti’s 50th anniversary at Tiffany & Co. is a remarkable testament to the House’s heritage of collaborating with the world’s greatest artists. Based on shared ideals of inventiveness and obsession with craft, Peretti was able to create an extraordinary universe of groundbreaking designs that changed the course of Tiffany’s history and continues to resonate to this day.” 

 

 

As a testament to their long-standing relationship, the House will debut special anniversary creations. Some of the beloved icons of the designer will be reimagined with exceptional gemstones and in bold scales. Styles will include new Bone and Split rings inspired by Peretti’s legendary cuff, as well as rare Bone cuffs handset with pavé diamonds, pavé rubies and unique handcarved cabochon stones. Limited Mesh styles with tanzanite’s, rubellites, emeralds and diamonds, one-of-a-kind Cabochon rings, and bold Fancy Color rings will also be featured in the collection. Her celebrated Open Heart, Starfish, Bean design, Scorpion and Amapola designs are available with pavé diamonds, alongside Snake and High Tide earrings in dramatic lengths and Diamonds by the Yard statement necklaces and earrings.

Image: Courtesy the Brand; Photo Credit: Hilda Moray

This article first appeared in Harper's Bazaar India, September 2024, print issue.

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