the look
DESIGNER SHOWCASE
74
Speckled chrysoprase and diamond east-west ring; $9,790
RAY OF COLOR
W
From Melbourne apprentice to New York City mainstay, Ray Griffiths keeps evolving—as does his love of gemstones BY RIMA SUQI
18k yellow gold Crownwork ball-top earrings with chrysocolla and azurite drops; $4,360
SUMMER 2026
Classic Oval Crownwork link bracelet; $23,970
Crownwork Oval Link necklace with various charms; $26,125; Ray Griffiths; 212-689-7209; raygriffiths.com
HEN I STARTED my career, I wanted all gemstones to be perfect,” Ray Griffiths tells JCK. The 69-year-old designer is perched in an Eames lounge chair in his New York City apartment. Just back from the Tucson gem shows, he’s excited, scrolling through photos of his (substantial) finds. “The older I get, the more I want to see nature, and the more I want to see natural,” he says. Inclusions, once dismissed as flaws, are now objects of fascination “because they’re more interesting.” Griffiths reaches for a piece of Lithuanian amber to make his point. “Look at what’s inside it! Lily pads! If that was perfect, you’d think it was a piece of plastic. But it’s the lily pads that identify it and give it a sense of reality. It’s beyond beautiful.” This marks a subtle shift for Griffiths, a bench-trained jeweler long associated with richly saturated gemstones and intricately carved 18k gold. After decades in the industry, the Australian native’s appetite for visible signs of nature is what drives him now, and his yearly buying trips to Tucson still ignite the kid-in-a-candy-store thrill. “I’m relatively compulsive while I’m in Tucson because I’m buying what I love, and I’m buying color,” he admits. This year’s haul included Australian chrysoprase threaded with dendrites, Mexican fire opals, lavender jade, variegated carnelian, chalcedony, and golden Australian South Sea pearls—all chosen for personality versus perfection. “Years ago, someone said to me I’d never make money in the jewelry business because I do color and everybody else is selling diamonds, but color is what I love,” he says. By JCKONLINE.COM