Brooch
1967-1968 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The asymmetric rays of textured gold wirework which radiate around the central cabochon stone of lapis lazuli make this brooch a dramatic example of the revolution in jewellery design in London in the 1960s. The rich colours of the lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the textured gold are the main features of the design; the diamonds play a supporting role. On other occasions Grima left stones rough and used objects cast from nature.
Andrew Grima (1921-2007) was born in Rome of a Maltese father and an Italian mother. He trained in Nottingham as an engineer, fought in Burma in the Second World War, and then entered the jewellery firm, HJ Company, owned by the father of first wife, Helène Haller. He exhibited in the celebration of contemporary jewellery organized by Graham Hughes at the Goldsmiths' Hall, London in 1961, won a series of prizes in the Diamonds International Award competitions, and, in 1966, the Duke of Edinburgh Prize for Elegant Design. The same year he opened his London shop in Jermyn Street, its façade made of rough slabs of slate sharing the panache and the energy of his jewels. The Queen, Princess Margaret and Jacqueline Onassis have all worn his jewellery. The V&A's brooch was bought in December 1968 by the director Roman Polanski for his wife, the actress Sharon Tate, to mark their first wedding anniversary.
The firm moved in1986 to Lugano and in 1993 to Gstaad where it continues.
Andrew Grima (1921-2007) was born in Rome of a Maltese father and an Italian mother. He trained in Nottingham as an engineer, fought in Burma in the Second World War, and then entered the jewellery firm, HJ Company, owned by the father of first wife, Helène Haller. He exhibited in the celebration of contemporary jewellery organized by Graham Hughes at the Goldsmiths' Hall, London in 1961, won a series of prizes in the Diamonds International Award competitions, and, in 1966, the Duke of Edinburgh Prize for Elegant Design. The same year he opened his London shop in Jermyn Street, its façade made of rough slabs of slate sharing the panache and the energy of his jewels. The Queen, Princess Margaret and Jacqueline Onassis have all worn his jewellery. The V&A's brooch was bought in December 1968 by the director Roman Polanski for his wife, the actress Sharon Tate, to mark their first wedding anniversary.
The firm moved in1986 to Lugano and in 1993 to Gstaad where it continues.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gold, partly textured, mouted with lapis lazuli, turquoise and diamonds set in platinum. |
| Brief description | Brooch, gold, lapis lazuli, turquoise and diamonds, by Andrew Grima, London, 1967-8. |
| Physical description | Lapis lazuli, turquoise and diamond gold brooch. From a central cabochon-cut stone of lapis lazuli radiate gold rays of irregular length roughly textured with light longitudinal lines and transverse cuts or notches. The rays are mounted with cabochon turquoise and seven brilliant-cut diamonds set in platinum. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Given by William and Judith Bollinger |
| Object history | The brooch was a present from the film director Roman Polanksi to his wife, the actress Sharon Tate, to celebrate their first wedding anniversary (which fell on 20 January 1969). It appears from an article in the Sunday Mirror on 15 December 1968 that it had just been purchased. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | The asymmetric rays of textured gold wirework which radiate around the central cabochon stone of lapis lazuli make this brooch a dramatic example of the revolution in jewellery design in London in the 1960s. The rich colours of the lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the textured gold are the main features of the design; the diamonds play a supporting role. On other occasions Grima left stones rough and used objects cast from nature. Andrew Grima (1921-2007) was born in Rome of a Maltese father and an Italian mother. He trained in Nottingham as an engineer, fought in Burma in the Second World War, and then entered the jewellery firm, HJ Company, owned by the father of first wife, Helène Haller. He exhibited in the celebration of contemporary jewellery organized by Graham Hughes at the Goldsmiths' Hall, London in 1961, won a series of prizes in the Diamonds International Award competitions, and, in 1966, the Duke of Edinburgh Prize for Elegant Design. The same year he opened his London shop in Jermyn Street, its façade made of rough slabs of slate sharing the panache and the energy of his jewels. The Queen, Princess Margaret and Jacqueline Onassis have all worn his jewellery. The V&A's brooch was bought in December 1968 by the director Roman Polanski for his wife, the actress Sharon Tate, to mark their first wedding anniversary. The firm moved in1986 to Lugano and in 1993 to Gstaad where it continues. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.34-2009 |
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| Record created | August 26, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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