The Jewels of Lalique

The name of René Lalique is synonymous with one of the most extraordinary decorative vocabularies of this century. He is known primarily for his masterful work in glass, but he also designed exquisite jewelry that came to epitomize the art nouveau style and adorned the most exotic women of fin-de-siècle Paris. His wonderful creations were populated by a magnificent world of fantastical beings-dragons, serpents, lilies, swans, orchids, and Symbolist women, who metamorphosed into dragonflies, lotus blossoms, or terrifying Medusas. He incorporated an extraordinary range of materials into his pieces, including glass, horn, enamel, precious stones, and crystal, which were selected not only for their aesthetic values but also for their symbolic worth. This book brings together a dazzling array of jewels, many from private collections, and presents them in the context of Lalique's decorative objects and contemporary glasswork.