Jewellery by Tony Duquette and Hutton Wilkinson to be displayed at GIA headquarters

An exhibit of the works of Hollywood design legends Tony Duquette and Hutton Wilkinson will feature at GIA’s (Gemological Institute of America) world headquarters in Carlsbad, CA. The exhibit, the duo's first-ever all-jewelry exhibit is entitled “More is More: Tony Duquette - Hutton Wilkinson Jewelry,” and will offer over 50 emblematic jewelry creations reflecting a variety of styles, periods and palettes often showcasing unusual gemstones paired with rare materials in whimsical designs. The exhibit will debut on October 10, 2013 and will be on display until March 2014.

“Duquette and Wilkinson’s jewelry make a show-stopping statement. Someone wearing these pieces would not go unnoticed,” said Terri Ottaway, curator of the GIA Museum. “It is amazing to see the unusual gemstone choices they made – and astonishing to see how well these unconventional materials work together.”

Duquette – the first and only American to be honored with a one-man show at the Louvre in Paris – worked with business partner and design collaborator Wilkinson for more than 30 years prior to his death in 1999. The Duchess of Windsor, Doris Duke, Buddy Rogers, J. Paul Getty and Elizabeth Arden were among their many famous clients. Their bold and theatrical jewelry designs draw inspiration from their notable work as costume and set designers during the Golden Age of Hollywood. “If it’s not fabulous, it’s meaningless,” Wilkinson has said of their design aesthetic. Wilkinson continues to create pieces for the “Tony Duquette Collection” using their favorite materials such as malachite, pearls, emerald and coral. Wilkinson describes these jewelry designs as bold, theatrical, extravagant, Byzantine and sometimes even barbaric.

“They chose color for inspiration rather than searching for perfection in the gems,” Larry Larson, a gemology instructor at GIA, added. “They always seemed to go for strength rather than the merely pretty.” Pieces exhibited are on loan from personal collectors and The Anthony and Elizabeth Duquette Foundation for the Living Arts.