GLAM ROCKS: British Jewellery in the 1970s

BRI T I SH J EW ELLERY I N T H E 1 970S A LOAN EXHIBITION FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE COLLECTION 5TH - 13TH OCTOBER 2021

BR ITISH JEWEL L ER Y IN TH E 1970 S A LOAN EXHIBITION FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE COLLECTION 5TH - 13TH OCTOBER 2021 Lyon & Turnbull, 22 Connaught Street, London, W2 2AF

FOREWORD

By Mary Ann Wingfield Author of Modern British Jewellery Designers 1960-1980 - A Collector’s Guide

The 20 year period, between 1960 and 1980, represents a unique era in British history when independent jewellery designers where encouraged to flourish and blossom, largely as the result of the efforts of one man, Graham Hughes. He was ably backed up by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, for whom he worked as Art Director, but it was he who worked tirelessly over these 20 years to find new talent and to encourage and promote the existing independent jewellery designers in the UK whose spirits were flagging from the effects of high taxes for luxury goods and an almost dis interested public. People were still reeling from the effects of the War, a utility mindset and rationing which was only just being phased out by the mid 1950s.

Encouraged by Hughes, the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, in association with the V&A Museum, London, held a landmark exhibition in 1961 at Goldsmith’s Hall. The International Exhibition of Modern Jewellery 1890-1961 showcased not only the best of Britain in jewellery design but the rest of the world as well. Hughes also encouraged De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd to offer generous prize money to the competition winners of the most exciting jewellery designs which certainly flushed out some young talent.

To meet prevailing market conditions, throughout this 20 year period 1960 to 1980, the jewellery designers turned to less expensive materials. Coloured stones and geodes, which were just being introduced from Brazil, or jewellery using no stones

at all. With design now being the most important commodity, the craftsmen dropped the use of platinum, which had been the favoured metal before the war, in favour of less expensive gold, particularly yellow gold, which was pegged at 35 dollars a troy ounce by the London Gold Pool for most of the 1960s. Of course, that price couldn’t be sustained for any length of time and by 1980 the price of gold had soared to 840 dollars, per troy ounce, part of a series of events which became known as the Nixon “shock”.

Lyon and Turnbull have always been supportive of this period of jewellery. They held a brilliant loan exhibition of British designer jewellery representing the 1960s, in 2019, which they entitled “Stardust” and now, in 2021, they are hosting an equally exciting loan exhibition representing British jewellery designers of the 1970s which they have called “Glam Rocks”.

The exhibition coincides with the publication of Modern British Jewellery Designers 19601980 - A Collector’s Guide, written by myself, with a foreword by the 2nd Earl of Snowdon, perhaps better known as the designer, David Linley, which the innovative publishers, ACC Art Books Ltd, have just produced.

As the foreword to the book suggests, the purpose of both the book and the exhibition is to “expand the interest in this unique era of British designer jewellery when the boundaries of design and craftsmanship were pushed to their limits”.

THAT 70s SHOW

By Annabel Davidson Editor of Vanity Fair on Jewellery, jewellery editor at Country & Town House magazine, contributor to Vogue, New York Times and The Telegraph

The 1970s and 2020s could be related. The 70s avoided a global pandemic (just), but strikes and shortages were rife, people were freaking out over inflation (justifiably), and wide-legged trousers were everything. See? Practically twins!

So we can’t pick and choose what we bring back from any particular decade, but if it was up to me, 1970s jewellery by independent British jewellers would be it. The crazily textured odes to nature, architectural volumes and rough gemstones that were the backbone of the era’s jewellery would be very welcome today, when an endless array of diamond-pave-set white gold seems to roll off every production line.

Bring back asymmetry and randomness! Bring back sharp points and mess! The 1970s saw women’s eyelashes spiky with layers of mascara, and the jewellery spiky to go with it, with the likes of Andrew Grima and David Thomas forming gold into rough needles, stalactite-like around chunks of tourmaline or citrine. Hark a return of the abstract and askew, as 1970s jewellers veered even further from the smooth lines of the modernist movement and dainty designs of post-war fashions into something more organic and random – and dare we say it, with less intrinsic worth. Geodes, watermelon tourmaline slices, synthetic sapphires (yes, they’ve been around since well before the 1970s), and uncut crystals! It was less about the value of the materials and more about the sheer artistry of the designs.

It was all the perfect match for 1970s fashions – how else could jewellery compete with kaftans that could house entire families, flares for years and sequinned bodysuits? Jewellery needed to make its own noise, and it did so in bold, yellow gold, somehow more yellow than anything seen today, and astonishing scale. A brooch to cover half your corduroy jacket? Yes! A necklace like a precious gold puzzle cascading over your bosom? Yes! Cocktail rings on every finger? Yes! It’s little wonder that people who aren’t familiar with the work of Grima, Kutchinsky, and Packard don’t know what to make of it when they do – the look was so unique to the era, and jewellery today so different, so smooth in comparison, that in contrast it seems almost foreign, like another artform altogether. But there are clues that this bright shooting star of jewellery history still has some light to shine. A recent high jewellery collection by a Parisian house bears a striking resemblance to a necklace by Alan Martin Gard in this catalogue. I suspect that’s just the beginning of a return to 70s splendour.

1 A LAPIS LAZULI AND DIAMOND PENDANT,

BY JOHN DONALD, 1975 Designed as an openwork textured 18 carat gold flowerhead, accented by brilliant-cut diamonds, one petal set with a lapis lazuli panel, to a cable-link chain, maker’s mark JAD, London hallmark Lengths: pendant 4.2cm, chain 47.8cm

2 A DIAMOND-SET BROOCH,

BY KUTCHINSKY, 1971 Designed as an 18 carat gold abstract openwork spray, accented by brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Kutchinsky, London hallmark Length: 4.9cm

3 AN ONYX ‘GEMINI’ PENDANT,

BY KUTCHINSKY, 1974 Applied with two figures on a circular black onyx plaque, within a textured 18 carat gold mount, signed Kutchinsky, London hallmark Width: 5.8cm

4 A MOSS AGATE AND DIAMOND BELT BUCKLE/PENDANT,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1972 The large moss agate slice, encased in a textured 18 carat gold surround, accented with a single brilliant-cut diamond, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark Length: 8.0cm

5 A DIAMOND-SET BROOCH,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1971 Of opposing curved design, the textured bark effect rods accented with a course of brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Grima, London hallmark Length: 5.5cm

6 A TOURMALINE BROOCH,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1970 The green tourmaline crystal, wrapped in bark textured gold, accented with a bar set with three brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Grima, London hallmark

7 A DIAMOND-SET NECKLACE,

BY ALAN MARTIN GARD, 1974 The front composed of a graduated fringe of bi-coloured 18 carat gold overlapping textured panels, some edged with lines of brilliant-cut diamonds, to a similarly textured panel-link back chain, London hallmark, maker’s mark AMG Length: 39.0cm

8 A TIGER’S EYE WATCH RING, BY ROY KING, 1970S The oval tiger’s eye dial within a textured 18 carat gold mount, maker’s mark RCK, partial London hallmark, dial signed Bueche Girod, movement unsigned Ring size: J/K

9

A CITRINE AND DIAMOND DRESS RING, BY BECK & BLYTH, 1970 The rounded triangular-shaped citrine in an openwork frame, accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, to an 18 carat gold gallery and hoop of rod design, maker’s mark BB, UK hallmark Ring size: M

10 A SYNTHETIC COLOUR-CHANGE SAPPHIRE DRESS RING, BY DAVID THOMAS, 1972 Of abstract openwork 18 carat gold lozenge-shaped design, centred with a circular-cut synthetic colourchange sapphire, maker’s mark ‘DAT’, London hallmark Ring size: N½

11 AN OPAL RING,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1972 The oval cabochon opal, within an 18 carat gold openwork textured wire mount, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark Ring size: K

12 A CITRINE AND DIAMOND PENDANT/BROOCH,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1977 Set to the centre with a rectangular step-cut citrine, within an abstract surround of textured 18 carat gold rods, accented by courses of single-cut diamonds, signed Grima, maker’s mark HJCo, London hallmark Length: 8.0cm

13 A CULTURED MABÉ PEARL RING AND PAIR OF EARRINGS,

BY BEN ROSENFELD, 1976 Each set with a cultured mabé pearl within a surround of abstract textured design, accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, maker’s mark BRL, London hallmark Ring size: P

14 A WATERMELON TOURMALINE NECKLACE, BY GILLIAN PACKARD, 1970 Alternately-set with watermelon tourmaline slices and textured 14 carat gold triangular links, accented with circular-cut blue zircon, maker’s mark GEP, London hallmark

15 A WATERMELON TOURMALINE BROOCH, BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1970 The unpolished watermelon tourmaline slice, within a mount of textured 18 carat gold triangular openwork motifs, accented with a brilliant-cut diamond, signed Grima, maker’s mark HJCo., London hallmark Length: 5.7cm

16 A YELLOW SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND RING, BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1977 The oval-cut yellow sapphire, within an 18 carat gold beadwork surround accented by brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Grima, London hallmark Ring size: L

17 A TOURMALINE RING,

BY VALERIE PICKFORD, 1975 The oval-cut green tourmaline, within a pierced and textured 18 carat gold mount with bead decoration, maker’s mark VEP, Birmingham hallmark Ring size: P

18 A PAIR OF DIAMOND-SET EARRINGS,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1972 Each realistically modelled as a geranium leaf in 18 carat gold, with a brilliant-cut diamond accent, signed AGLtd, London hallmark Length: 2.4cm

19 A DIAMOND-SET BROOCH,

BY GILLIAN PACKARD, 1970 Of 18 carat gold openwork abstract design, with polished front and textured reverse, accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, maker’s mark GEP, UK hallmarks Length: 6.5cm

20 A DIAMOND RING,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1970 Of abstract tiered 18 carat gold openwork design, set with brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Grima, London hallmark Ring size: L

“It was a time of optimism, there were private clients, confident of their own taste and happy to buy or commission new pieces without the reassurance or validation of a corporate name or image.”

Tom Scott September 2021

JEWELLERY FOR THE WORKING WOMAN

By Charlotte Peel, GG Head of Jewellery, Lyon & Turnbull London

Since the 1930s women’s participation in the economy continued to rise, with the gains primarily owing to an increase in work among married women. By the 1970s, a dramatic change in women’s work lives was under way. As they gained experience in the work force, they increasingly saw that they could balance work and family and a new model of the two-income family emerged. Some women began to attend college and graduate school with the expectation of working, whether or not they planned to marry and have families.

These changes in attitudes and expectations were supported by other changes under way in society. Workplace protections were enhanced through the passage of the Equal Pay Act in 1970 and the Sex Discrimination Act and Employment Protection Act in 1975 in the UK. Access to birth control increased, which allowed married couples greater control over the size of their families and young women the ability to delay marriage and to plan children around their educational and work choices.

Naturally fashion and jewellery had to adapt to women’s new roles and lifestyle. The ethnic, romantic look favoured by young women in the late 1960s and early 1970s started giving way to structured suits and business wear. Jewels had to be practical and easy to wear in an office setting. As women became economically independent, they were now in a position to choose and buy jewellery for themselves and according to their own taste. They wanted pieces that could take them from day to night, looking suitable both in the office and the nightclub. Bold earrings and brooches in yellow gold and strong colours were favoured, as they were decorative, without interfering with women’s busy lifestyles. The long necklaces and sautoirs, so popular in the early 1970s disappeared in favour of shorter necklaces and chokers by the 1980s.

Icons of fashion and music such as Bianca Jagger, Cher, Twiggy and David Bowie showcased the changing trends, with Bowie’s move from Ziggy Stardust to the White Duke in 1975 leading the charge and Bianca Jaggers famous white suit defining a more liberated era for an entire generation of women.

As fashion moved away from individualistic expression to a more streamlined business look, the strongly textured surfaces of 1960s and 1970s jewellery also gave way to smoother polished lines, the jagged spikiness and abstract designs to more geometrical and stylised motifs. While still bold and colourful the move towards a more symmetrical style, devoid of superfluous ornamentation had begun and would flourish throughout the 1980s.

21 A SILVER GILT SURPRISE EGG,

BY STUART DEVLIN, 1976 Of ovoid form with matted textured surface and polished band, opening to reveal four enamelled flowers and an enamelled ladybird on a spray of silver-gilt leaves, on a polished silver ground, maker’s mark SD, limited edition numbered 205, London hallmark

22 A RHODOCHROSITE AND CULTURED PEARL NECKLACE,

BY STUART DEVLIN, 1978 Composed of alternating 18 carat gold caryatid links, cultured pearls and rhodochrosite beads to a bolt-ring clasp, maker’s mark SD, London hallmark Length: 82.0cm

23 A FLOWER BROOCH,

BY STUART DEVLIN, 1979 Designed as a floral openwork circlet, maker’s mark SD, London hallmark Length: 4.0cm

24 A PAIR OF DIAMOND EARSTUDS,

BY GILLIAN PACKARD, 1973 Each old brilliant-cut diamond within a polished openwork 18 carat gold halo surround, maker’s mark GEP, London hallmark Length: 1.0cm

25 A DIAMOND CLUSTER RING,

BY RUDOLF HELTZEL, 1976 Collet-set to the centre with a marquiseshaped diamond, within a similarly-set brilliant-cut diamond surround, to a polished hoop, maker’s mark RH Ring size: L

26 A DIAMOND BAR BROOCH,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1977 Set with twelve brilliant-cut diamonds in a polished bar mount, signed Grima, partial maker’s mark AG, London hallmark Length: 5.2cm

27 A DIAMOND RING,

BY GERALD BENNEY, 1979 The 18 carat gold mount with engraved swirl decoration, set with six brilliant-cut diamonds, maker’s mark AGB, London hallmark Ring size: M

28 A LAPIS LAZULI AND DIAMOND RING,

BY STUART DEVLIN, 1976 The tapered bark-textured 18 carat white gold mount centred with a circular lapis lazuli panel, framed by brilliant-cut diamonds, signed SD, London hallmark Ring size: O-P

29 A SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND RING, BY ANDREW GRIMA, CIRCA 1975 The tapering band of textured geometric form, collet-set to the front with a step-cut sapphire and a panel of baguette-cut diamonds, with a recess between, signed Grima, London hallmark Ring size: I

30 A BOULDER OPAL AND DIAMOND RING, BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1974 The oval-shaped boulder opal within a surround of brilliant-cut diamonds, to a textured 18 carat white gold mount, signed Grima, London hallmark Ring size: I½

31 A CULTURED PEARL AND GEM-SET NECKLACE,

BY GERDA FLOCKINGER, 1977 Formed as a series of rectangular plaques, both sides of intricate fused decoration including bead and wire-work, some plaques accented by seed pearls and diamonds, each plaque connected by a trio of baroque cultured pearls of grey tint, to a cabochon citrine clasp, maker’s mark GF Length: 79.9cm

32

33

A WATCH BANGLE,

BY ROY KING, 1974

A LODOLITE QUARTZ RING,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1973

The square mirrored dial, within a stepped silver case, to a bifurcated silver bangle bracelet with adjustable buckle clasp, dial signed Roy King, London hallmark

Collet-set with a pear-shaped cabochon lodolite quartz in a polished 18 carat white gold mount, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark

Case width: 28mm

Ring size: N

34 A SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND-SET BROOCH,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1979 Designed as an openwork cluster of overlapping 18 carat gold batons, accented by circular-cut sapphires and brilliant-cut diamonds, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark Width: 4.5cm

35 A CITRINE AND DIAMOND ‘BIRD’S NEST’ RING,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1974 The oval-cut citrine within a surround of 18 carat gold batons, accented with baguette-cut diamonds, to a tapered hoop of hammered finish, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark Ring size: N

36 A GEODE PENDANT,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1977 The polished triangular slice of white chalcedony with a darker centre, mounted within a gold frame with textured triangular corners and surmount, signed Grima, maker’s mark, London hallmark Width: 10.3cm

37 A TRI-COLOUR TOURMALINE AND DIAMOND RING,

BY ANDREW GRIMA, 1979 Collet-set with a rectangular step-cut tri-colour tourmaline and accented by baguette-cut diamonds, mounted in bi-colour 18 carat gold, signed Grima, maker’s mark AGLtd, London hallmark Ring size: L

38 A CITRINE SINGLE-STONE RING,

BY RUDOLF HELTZEL, 1975 The collet-set circular-cut citrine, raised above a polished 18 carat gold mount, maker’s mark RH, Dublin hallmarks Ring size: N

39 A TRACK-LINK BRACELET,

BY LOUIS OSMAN, 1977 The openwork bracelet of rectangular bi-coloured linking, with swivel locking clasp, unmarked Length: 18.5cm

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

By Charlotte Peel, GG Head of Jewellery, Lyon & Turnbull London

First and foremost, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to our anonymous private collector, whose pieces are presented in this exhibition. Their passion and enthusiasm for British jewellery is infectious and inspiring and I am grateful for their time and support throughout this project.

I am honoured and delighted that Mary Ann Wingfield has agreed to launch her exciting new book Modern British Jewellers 1960-1980 – A Collector’s Guide in conjunction with this exhibition and has generously contributed the foreword to this catalogue.

I would also like to thank Annabel Davidson for sharing her expertise on 1970s style and how it influenced jewellery design in the period and Tom Scott, who worked alongside many of the jewellers featured in this catalogue, for his unique perspective and invaluable insight.

My sincere thanks also go to Jon Stokes Photography for the beautiful pictures, my colleagues Philip Smith, Matt McKenzie, Alex Dove and Jess Curnow for their help with the catalogue, marketing and logistics.

While jewellery has often been seen as a secondary art form, the artist jewellers of the 1960s and 70s successfully used it as a vehicle for personal expression and a medium which reflected the social and cultural changes of the period.

INDEX

Beck & Blythe

9

Benney, Gerald

27

Devlin, Stuart

21, 22, 23, 28

Donald, John

1

Flockinger, Gerda

31

Gard, Alan Martin

7

Grima, Andrew 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, 20, 26, 29, 30, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 Heltzel, Rudolf

25, 38

King, Roy

8,32

Kutchinsky

2, 3

Osman, Louis

39

Packard, Gillian

14, 19, 24

Pickford, Valerie

17

Rosenfeld, Ben

13

Thomas, David

10

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