The exhibition's woven ceiling ornaments were created by Phka Studio (Photo: Tiffany & Co)
When Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly strolls through Tiffany & Co’s New York flagship in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, she serenely proclaims: “You see what I mean that nothing bad could ever happen to you in a place like this? It isn’t that I give a hoot about jewellery, except diamonds, of course … like that.”
Her eyes go wide, the camera pans down, and inside the display case we see it — the legendary 128.54-carat, 82-facet Tiffany Diamond, mounted in the Ribbon Rosette crafted by the late designer Jean Schlumberger. Creating this new high jewellery setting for the dazzling yellow stone was one of the first challenges brought to the Frenchman by the American maison, but certainly not the last. Among his greatest works for Tiffany & Co was his widely adored Bird on a Rock design, conceived in 1965 and fashioned as a setting for the eponymous gem in 1995.
Schlumberger’s fantastical visions of the natural world heralded an instrumental era of creative synergy and singular artistry for Tiffany & Co, an illustrious partnership that remains indispensable to the house to this day. The maison continues to reflect upon Schlumberger’s ingenious ideas of bold, unapologetic and even theatrical beauty, notably in the chapters of its annual Blue Book collections. In the 2023 Out of the Blue series, chief artistic officer Nathalie Verdeille reinterpreted the artist’s aquatic dreams, while the 2024 Tiffany Céleste suggested a lunar take on his signature stonebound creature.
Paying homage to the renowned designer, the teal-clad luxury jeweller launched Legendary Legacy: A Tiffany & Co Exhibition in Bangkok at the end of August. The showcase honours Schlumberger’s incomparable contributions to the company’s aesthetic oeuvre, popular impact and the Bird on a Rock’s 60th anniversary.
“We are thrilled to debut our first exhibition in Thailand, a country that reflects a deep appreciation for design and creativity. Legendary Legacy celebrates Tiffany & Co’s 188-year history and the iconic designs of one of the 20th century’s most gifted artists, Jean Schlumberger,” says CEO Anthony Ledru.
3.jpg
Prior to his tenure at Tiffany & Co, Alsace-born Schlumberger moved to Paris in his early twenties to pursue his creative passions and open his own atelier. He was tapped by fashion designer and beloved surrealist Elsa Schiaparelli in 1937 to lead the creation of her buttons and costume jewellery collection, during which he garnered great repute while forming his signature avant-garde style that blended fantasy and reality.
It was not until after WWII that then chairman of the New York-based house Walter Hoving invited Schlumberger to join Tiffany & Co as vice president in 1956, where the visionary conceived a prestigious litany of whimsical jewels and consolidated an elite web of clientele at his specially appointed studio. Despite his many glimmering creations, the most recognisable of which include his pailloné enamel bangles, Cooper bracelet and Sixteen Stone diamond ring, Schlumberger remained loyal to the fundamental artistry of his process, working with Tiffany & Co’s jewellers to transform his two-dimensional sketches into spectacular gemstones. Of his role, he famously insisted, “I am only a pencil. My drawing is paramount.”
Why set this homage to one of the American brand’s most prolific designers in this part of the world? Legendary Legacy was brought to Bangkok not only due to the company’s recent reinvigoration of its retail ecosystem, but the size and maturity of the Thai market, elucidates Ledru. “We tend to organise exhibitions or events of this magnitude in countries where we have a sizeable local base, clients that know jewellery. We know the passion of Thai people for creative high jewellery, craftsmanship and gemstones.”
He also attributes the choice of location to Schlumberger’s love for travel, not only to his house in the Caribbean but throughout Asia, including Indonesia, Hong Kong and, of course, Thailand.
The curation of the display was spearheaded by vice president and creative director of creative visual merchandising and The Tiffany Archives, Christopher Young. “Process is very important to Tiffany. Everybody who works here is a dreamer; they all have a great deal of passion to create newness,” he explains. “Many teams, especially the local one, were instrumental in conceiving this as something that would be important and a lasting memory for our clients to experience. The story of Schlumberger is one of tremendous creative and artistic innovation.”
The unprecedented occasion is also the brand’s first fully Schlumberger-focused showcase. “We had a diamond exhibition in Tokyo last year. It was bigger than this one, but the Jean Schlumberger section was not as deep,” states Ledru.
Young further remarks this is a “brave” move for the house, as other such events have always strived to encompass the brand’s full creative identity and fleet of icons, marking a shift from a widely appealing commercial angle to one that dedicates itself to Schlumberger’s fantastic design innovation and invaluable place within Tiffany & Co’s history.
Not only are many of the jewels in this exhibition being presented for the first time in Thailand and Southeast Asia, this instance is made all the more special by the appearance of some highly rare pieces — Young estimates at least 20% of the approximately 55 objects on display were being shown for the first time.
4.jpg
Located in One Bangkok Tower 4, Legendary Legacy is separated into five rooms, each concentrating upon a particular theme in Schlumberger’s works. Guests begin in Guadeloupe: An Island of Inspiration, named for the Caribbean department where Schlumberger had a home. This section situates him within the circle of creatives and clients from which he emerged in the 1930s. Visitors are greeted immediately by the Trophée de Vaillance Clip, commissioned by his close friend Diana Vreeland and one of his most well-known jewels.
Throughout the space one finds not only finished treasures, but drafts, advertisements and letters intended to illustrate the importance of Schlumberger’s sketches and surrounding — drawings of fruit, flowers and baskets hone in on repeating patterns that appear in necklaces and brooches, while correspondence between himself and one of his most prominent clients, Rachel Lambert “Bunny” Mellon, attest to the pair’s long-lasting friendship. Young notes the importance of these female relationships to the exquisite pieces Schlumberger yielded, each intended to represent the woman’s distinct personality: Millicent Rogers’ spiky, protective brooches, or Babe Paley’s fruit bracelet, for example.
The following Garden of Imagination pays tribute to lush natural motifs, in particular the creative value of Mellon’s estate Oak Spring to Schlumberger, as well as his travels to Thailand. Vivid green walls are crowned by a complex nest of traditional Thai weavings that twirl and adorn the ceiling, produced by floral designer collective Phka Studio. The Elephant Head clip (made in 1968) is positioned at the entrance of the room, one of the never-before-seen pieces on loan from esteemed art collectors Joan and Jack Quinn, and which Young offers was likely inspired by Schlumberger’s travels to the Land of Smiles. Other highlights include the Berry Sprig brooch, purchased for Jackie Kennedy by her husband (the then senator) as a Christmas gift, and an amethyst encircled by gold roots and branches and studded with ruby and turquoise orbs, also never displayed before.
ministers.jpg
The exhibition transitions from the garden to the water: The next room, fittingly dubbed The Depths of Beauty, is a darkly lit arena where undulating glass plates emulate dappled light across a liquid surface and a screen depicts Schlumberger’s bejewelled marine creatures in animated motion. “The sea can be a sensuous, prevailing source of inspiration,” says Young. The French artist loved the world under the water — one imagines him diving to discover a shellfish, then channelling this image not literally but in a mnemonic and magical manner. The Fleur du Mer starfish clip in the immediate left window is almost unwearably sculptural, embodying a balance between surprise, innovation and even ugliness, according to the vice president.
It is the Hedges and Flowers necklace that takes pride of place in the submarine space though — a breathtaking composition of 22 yellow sapphires and 13 cabochon turquoises from 1960 surrounded in elegant, anemone-like appendages. Several shell-shaped timepieces appear alongside one of Schlumberger’s 1968 seahorse brooches, which also influenced the Seahorse chapter of this year’s Blue Book: Sea of Wonder.
Rising from the bizarre deep to the bright azure sky, the penultimate section Wings: Symbols of the Soul turns visitors’ attentions to all things ethereal, celestial and dreamlike. Birds and motifs of flight, as well as cosmic components like stars, adorn each of these stunning works, depicted not only as soft plumes but often sharp, authoritative shapes. “One of my favourite pieces on special loan is the Big Bird brooch originally designed in 1941 and rediscovered in 1985 by Andy Warhol and Joan Quinn, who has kindly lent it for this special occasion. This is not something you will ever see again, a once-in-a-lifetime display just for our Thailand exhibition,” says Young of the room’s first jewel.
At the end of this corridor perches the original Bird on a Rock design in citrine. “I imagine the bird is resting on the stone, maybe for only two seconds, and then it will fly away. He has captured this moment,” Young posits, expressing how Schlumberger’s expert ability to seize a natural, ephemeral scene has made it such a prevailing symbol of the house.
lads.jpg
Like the briefly sitting bird, guests are also provided a moment to ruminate on this icon before being invited to the exhibition’s literal crowning jewel. Past a wall illustrating its four prior settings and a blackout curtain, the Tiffany Diamond is afforded a ring of its own, sitting pretty behind a glowing gold window within a pitch-dark room. Its fifth and current setting was created by Verdeille in conjunction with the grand reopening of The Landmark (as Tiffany & Co’s New York flagship is known) in 2023 and takes inspiration from Schlumberger’s winged masterwork. Five brilliantly iced birds encircle the Diamond, each subtly different and meticulously positioned to convey flight. The transformable design required a staggering 1,384 hours to create, 407 to set and another 190 to polish, totalling close to 2,000 hours of development.
These whirling creatures are composed of 75 total carats of diamonds — 1,220 round brilliant and 35 oval — while 10 round pink sapphires make up the striking eyes. The unparalleled stone at the centre unleashes a remarkable, almost incandescent, light (a “smoldering fire” as then chief gemologist George Frederick Kunz described in 1878 when the Diamond was cut) yet is astoundingly refined and welcoming — certainly worth, at the very least, more than Paul Varjak’s reserved “Well”.
“It is the first, and will probably be the last, as it took nearly 200 years [to get here],” admits Ledru on bringing the Diamond to Southeast Asia. “It really is what Tiffany has stood for since its creation, making a huge bet in the late 19th century by buying one of the biggest yellow rock diamonds in the world at the time. It is everything we love at Tiffany — the culture of excellence and optimism.”
On the impact of the historic treasure, Young says, “The Tiffany Diamond is one of the most famous in the world, at nearly 300 carats when first discovered. We decided to cut it not for the largest size nor brightest brilliance, but for colour. That continues to describe how doing things well, perhaps differently than others were doing, is a driving creative principle for us. The Diamond has not travelled very much in its lifetime, yet we wanted it here as a lasting part of this experience, one visitors will remember.”
The stone has famously never been for sale, but the lack of a literal tag is not solely why it is considered priceless. “You could never put a price on a diamond that was bought by Mr [Charles] Tiffany, cut in Paris, worn by Audrey Hepburn and celebrated by Jean Schlumberger. The history behind it is truly irreplaceable,” emphasises Young.
5.jpg
Commemorating the official opening of Legendary Legacy was a no-holds-barred launch party hosted just above the exhibition space on Aug 21. The glitzy and glamorous affair was graced by several high jewellery ambassadors and friends of the house from around the region, donning exceptional pieces from the maison. Among the key highlights from the blue carpet were Thai actor Win Metawin rocking the Tiffany Strawberry brooch; Malaysian celebrity Marion Caunter sporting the Urchin Fancy Intense Yellow diamond necklace and Ailsa ring; and Australian-Filipino actress and model Anne Curtis-Smith wearing the Bird on a Rock by Tiffany Bird pendant and Lovebirds ring.
'Legendary Legacy' is ongoing at One Bangkok, Thailand, until Sept 7. For bookings, click here.
This article first appeared on Sept 1, 2025 in The Edge Malaysia.
