Damiani is marking its 100th anniversary with an exhibition of one-of-a-kinds in Milan to celebrate its craft, legacy and avant-garde spirit.
A cushion-cut, 100-karat blue sapphire sourced in Sri Lanka has been safeguarded for years until the time for a big-ticket celebration arrived.
He touted his grandfather Enrico Grassi Damiani for setting the design and manufacturing bedrock of the company, managing to build a sizable business by word of mouth. The jeweler eventually turned into a full-fledged label in the 1970s thanks to Damiano Damiani, the founder’s son, who propelled its branding and started to invest in communication.
To be sure, Damiani has over the years tapped a roster of A-listers for its campaigns, from Brad Pitt and Isabella Rossellini to Sharon Stone and Jennifer Aniston. “We inherited the company when we were very young, not even 30,” he said, underscoring that it was a structured one, but that his generation further developed it internationally, expanding its retail network.
From the Margherita Desert Garden necklace featuring a 20-karat, pear-shaped fancy diamond in the rare deep brown, yellow coloration to the Belle Epoque Frame white gold bracelet shaped as a cinematographic film with frames embellished with baguette-cut diamonds and fancy diamonds in different cuts, the exhibit provides an opportunity for visitors to discover pieces that are rarely in the public’s eye for the rarity of the gemstones and elaborate designs.
The company has sourced some of the rarest and most striking gemstones, such as rubellite and other tourmalines, as well as tasmanite and diamonds, all worked according to heritage designs, including the Mimosa, Margherita and Belle Epoque styles. When the yearlong traveling exhibition closes, the jewelry pieces will be available for purchase.