Georgian Court Jewels Meet MET Gala Tiaras In A New Exhibit

With The Met Gala approaching on Monday (it is always the 1st Monday in May) we look to an exhibit in the UK that highlights tiaras and other contemporary jewels worn at the prior MET galas and other red carpet events.

“Crown to Couture,” which opens on April 5, 2023, and runs through October, will be held at the Georgian Court, Kensington Place and will showcase authentic Georgian fashion alongside modern couture. The exhibit explores the parallels between the 18th-century court and what has been worn by A-listers at red carpet events. Jewels on display include designs by Garrard, Verdura, Thelma West, Cindy Sherman, Chopard, Fernando Jorge, Fred Leighton, Lorraine Schwartz, Sacred Skulls and Schiaparelli and many jewels which were worn at the 2022 MET Gala, the 2nd of two-part series, “In America: An Anthology of Fashion.” Curated by Melanie Grant, “Crown to Couture” is Kensington Palace’s largest exhibit to date and is sponsored by Garrard.

But what do the MET Gala and Georgian England have to do with each other you might be asking yourself? In a report put out by Historian Royal Palaces, “Kensington Palace, once the home of the glittering Georgian court, has been the scene of lavish parties for centuries; a place to see and be seen. In the 18th century, its candlelit rooms would have sparkled with elaborate jewelry, an essential feature in court dress.”

Claudia Acott Williams, curator at Historic Royal Palaces, said, “Dressing for the Georgian court may feel like a distant custom, but “Crown to Couture” will shine a new light on these historic traditions by directly placing them in conversation with similar high-profile fashion events of today. We’re thrilled to be collaborating with a wide variety of well-known fashion houses and jewelry designers in order to explore the fascinating world of the Georgian court through a new contemporary lens.”

Tiaras are one of the areas the exhibit explores. After all, what is a court function without a dazzling headpiece? Additionally, the coronation of King Charles III is on May 6^th, yet another tie between nobility and Hollywood royalty.

Two tiaras worn to the 2022 and 2021 MET Galad will be on view. Custom tiara by Lorraine Schwartz, worn by Blake Lively in 2022, was a jaw-dropping copper tiara inspired by the Statue of Liberty and showcases over 100 carats of nude and bronze-colored diamonds and Paraiba tourmaline gemstones and will be displayed alongside custom Lorraine Schwartz earrings worn by Lively at the event. The earrings feature approximately 90 carats of nude diamonds alongside fan-shaped mint green Colombian emeralds.

The other tiara, which will be on display, was worn to the 2022 MET gala by Hamish Bowles, Editor at Large of Vogue and Editor in Chief of The World of Interiors, who co-hosted live coverage of the red- carpet. It was created by Fulco di Verdura. Betsy Cushing Whitney (one of the three Cushing sisters) commissioned the gold and diamond Feather Headdress Tiara for her and her husband, Ambassador John Hay Whitney’s presentation to the Court of Saint James in 1957 when she met Queen Elizabeth II.

Shortly before she died in 1998, Betsey Whitney offered the tiara to Ward Landrigan, who acquired it for the company’s Museum Collection. The Indian Headdress design became an iconic American symbol of freedom when Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the sculptor, designed the $10 gold coin in 1907. Inspired by the symbolism of his adopted country, Italian-born Verdura created a delicate wreath of feathers, set with 1,223 diamonds with a total weight of 28.32-carats.

Some other Met Gala Highlights include the ‘Rebel Black’ ring worn by Rihanna to the 2021 event and designed by Thelma West for Sotheby’s Brilliant & Black exhibition in New York of the same year. West set a five-carat pear-shaped diamond from Botswana into a black ceramic and gold setting to create the dramatic piece.

The ‘Disco’ earrings Emily Blunt wore to the Palm Springs Film Festival in 2019 will also go on display as a celebration of light by the Brazilian designer Fernando Jorge. They feature 12.26 carats of brilliant cut diamonds set into a gold disco-ball-inspired design that creates an optical illusion. The LizWorks earrings worn by Cate Blanchett to the ‘Joker’ 2019 premiere at the Venice Film Festival and designed with Cindy Sherman are made of Sardonyx cameos set in gold with pink and lemon quartz and were hand-carved in Italy. These modern-day cameos were inspired by Sherman’s photography on Instagram and what she describes as the ‘original selfie’.

These red carpet jewels will be featured side by side with full parures of diamonds and other historical jewelry and portraiture worn at the Georgina Court. And like today’s luminaries on the red carpet, men were no exception for showing their penchant for opulent jewelry. They wore badges, buttons and even shoe buckles to demonstrate their style.

Melanie Grant did a brilliant job of curating the event as she has done for others at Sotheby’s. She is also the author of two books, a jewelry journalist and Executive Director of the Responsible Jewellery Council.