Collectors’ corner: Siegelson’s rare jewels light up Tefaf New York

Carved Bakelite and diamond ‘La Ménagerie Magnétique’ Zebra brooch, by Daniel Brush, 2004

New York-based Brush is an enigmatic figure with an obsessive touch. Deeply fascinated by ancient craft techniques, Brush spends years learning them and fusing them into his own contemporary designs. Poor materials also fascinate and Brush is a master of working seriously precious gems into them, as this carved Bakelite and diamond brooch attests.

Aquamarine and ruby Belt necklace, by Paul Flato for Verdura, 1935

By the 1930s, the rise of Hollywood society demanded an American high jewellery style of its own. With hIs Disney-like design sensibility, underpinned by a thorough understanding of jewellery technique and engineering, Paul Flato’s artfully witty ‘conversation pieces’ fitted the bill. The Belt necklace was fittingly commissioned for Linda Lee Porter, the gregarious spouse of legendary composer Cole.

Art Deco cream and black enamel vanity case, by Gérard Sandoz, Paris, 1927 

A dedicated Modernist, Sandoz trained as a goldsmith in Paris, continuing in the family tradition of jewellery- and watchmaking. His insatiable taste for the era he grew up in manifested in a love of jazz, cinema and interior design. His sublime graphic style reflects the other milieu in which he excelled: poster design.

Rock crystal and diamond ‘Bibendum’ bracelet by Suzanne Belperron, 1930s

The contemporary jeweller’s jeweller, Belperron is a fabled figure in 20th-century jewellery design. Her instinct for industrial forms and eye for pure materials with a natural opulence made her designs the cream of avant-garde design in her time. They remain supremely relevant and collectible today.

Rock crystal, black onyx and diamond ‘Orange Tree’ brooch, by Cartier, 1926

Abstract expressions of typical fine jewellery themes, such as flora and fauna, emerged in the mid-1920s. This stark black and white depiction of an orange tree is a prime example of that movement and of Cartier’s sublime creative vision. Designed as a brooch-cum-cloche pin, the tree is rooted in an octagonal shaped rock crystal jardinière, complete with black onyx handles.