The Art Deco era emerged following the end of the First World War as a decadent time that was highly modern and extremely influential on the arts and decorative arts. Gone were the traditions of the past and an age of cocktail parties, liberated women and the nouveau riche spread through society. This movement impacted all areas of art and design and a new aesthetic emerged that was geometric and bold in color and design. Women’s fashion was greatly impacted by the roaring twenties and the long corseted dresses of the Victorian era vanished and women began to wear more revealing clothing such as pants in the daytime and at night short hemlines and plunging necklines. Jewelry became the desired accessory to cover the new scantily dressed woman and long necklaces, brooches and stacks of bracelets were in vogue.
Jewelry design became a perfect medium to express the new modern style and jewels emerged that were bold, geometric and innovative in design and use of material. Diamonds and platinum were a desirable materials and their combination quickly became an iconic symbol of the movement. By the end of the movement a more modern aesthetic emerged known as Art Moderne which expanded upon the ideals of the Art Deco movement by becoming more geometric and exploring the ideas of machinery and architecture. This bangle we have at J.S. Fearnley is an excellent example of Art Moderne design. Highly sculptural, the bangle is composed of various geometric and fluid forms composed of platinum and diamonds. The subtle color contrast emphasizes the texture added by the lively nature of the diamonds. Truly an exquisite jewel, this bracelet embodies the dynamic character of the late Art Deco movement and is highly collectable.
