One of the world’s most renowned architects, Zaha Hadid has been celebrated for a one-of-a-kind architectural language, based on fluid, organic shapes, always seemingly just beyond this world. For Summer 2010, she’s bringing her same creative language to a jewelry collection for Atelier Swarovski.

The Glace collection, as its called, consists of five pieces – bracelets, necklaces and rings – designed to be dramatically worn individually or as complementary pieces together. Each sculpted piece features colorful crystals suspended in clear resin, and every piece is available as one of only 50 in the exclusive collection.

According to Ms. Hadid:
“This enigmatic new Glace collection celebrates a powerful dichotomy between the purity of Swarovski’s precision cut crystals and the subtle, organic forms that envelop them. Each piece within the collection has evolved as an abstraction of the sinuous forms evident in nature, revealing my desire for experimentation and invention throughout every stage of design and realization.”

A selection from the new line is below; for more information, visit atelierswarovski.com.

*above: Zaha Hadid Pendant Jet

*above: Zaha Hadid Flame Cuffs

*above: Zaha Hadid Collar Opal

*above: Zaha Hadid Ring 1 +2 Crystal

*above: Zaha Hadid Jet Bangles

*All images courtesy of Atelier Swarovksi.

For the past twenty years, French designer Philippe Audibert has created stunning jewelry pieces, finding inspiration at home in the Parisian neighborhood of Saint Germain des Prés. And his Fall 2010 collection is no exception – gemstones are cut in bold geometric shapes and mixed in contrasting tones for super-drama. Featuring stackable bracelets, rings and more, the new line combines art deco style, potent architectural vibes and modern, clean lines.

According to Audibert, “”My designs are inspired by everything I see around me. I’m inspired by the beauty of the individual gems themselves. I enjoy the creative part the most. I absolutely love to design, and I also enjoy listening to my customer’s suggestions, incorporating hints of their ingenuity as well.”

Trained as an artist and sculptor, Audibert studied for eight years at the famed Academie des Beaux Arts before creating his first line of jewelry, hats, handbags, eyeglasses and decorative objects. Since then, he’s collaborated with several top design houses and created exclusive runway collections for the likes of LAGERFELD GALLERY, PACO RABANNE, CACHAREL and AGNES B. And his jewelry pieces – cuffs, sleeves, earrings, necklaces, rings and more – have graced numerous fashion mag covers and celebrity standouts. In 1999, he established a partnership with Swarovski, and now owns exclusive rights to several shapes of multifaceted crystals, including those presently incorporated in his Fall 2010 designs.

What do we love most? The drama of Audibert’s longer bracelets and the mix and match nature of the entire line. These are statement pieces to be sure. Check out some highlights below…

*above 3 photos: Audibert’s stackable fall 2010 bracelets

*above: Audibert fall 2010 rings

*All images courtesy of Philippe Audibert.

Combining modern style with authentic, vintage accents, Lulu Frost reinterprets materials like forgotten keys, rare Victorian watch fobs, Art Deco dress clips, Cut Steel shoe buckles from the 1860′s, and long-lost room numbers from the legendary Plaza Hotel for cool, contemporary jewelry pieces. 27-year-old American designer Lisa Salzer (aka Lulu) – a Dartmouth College grad who studied art history and fine art – launched her company in 2004, and since then her collections have appeared in everything from The New York Times, WWD and Vogue, to Daily Candy and the Chicago Tribune. Her pieces are available at Bergdorf Goodman, Barneys New York, Isetan, Fred Segal, Takashimaya and other fine retailers.

*above: Cut Steel Cuff, made of bound Art Deco rhinestone buckles (c. 1920) fastened with brass chain, brass lobster closure ($530-$625)

*above: Deco Earrings, made from vintage dress clip earrings (c. 1930), brass chain, and gold-filled wire ($300-$380)

*above: necklaces from The Plaza Collection, featuring large room numbers from the original Plaza Hotel doors, coupled with brass chains, lobster closures, and bows. (about $300-$400)

*All images courtesy of Lulu Frost. For more info, visit LuluFrost.com.

Now showing at New York’s Museum of Arts and Design: Portable Treasuries: Silver Jewelry from the Nadler Collection. Running through August 8th, the exhibit reveals over 150 silver works of art from one of the most comprehensive holdings of tribal, ethnic and contemporary jewelry in the world.

Husband and wife collectors Daniel and Serga Nadler acquired their 800+ piece silver jewelry collection over the course of 30 years on expeditions to countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Greece, India, Indonesia, Burma, Thailand, China, Mexico and the Western United States. The collection of contemporary silver jewelry ornaments was pledged as a promised gift to MAD.

“We started collecting silver jewelry as a lark, and over the years this has grown into a passion,“ says Daniel Nadler. “For centuries the jewelry a woman wore was a display of her family’s wealth and status. It also represented concrete value, since it could be pawned or sold in lean times. To Serga and me, the attraction of these pieces, created by various craftsmen in surprisingly simple workshops, is the artistic merit of their works. In our eyes they are indeed, as we talk about in our book: Silver: From Fetish to Fashion, pieces of wearable art.”

Portable Treasuries was curated by Dorothy Globus and Laura Stern.

Museum of Arts & Design is located at:
2 Columbus Circle
(at 59th Street and Broadway)
New York, NY 10019

Images, from top:
-Anonymous Maker, Miao Neckpiece, 20th century. Silver. 16 7/8 x 19 x 1/2 in.
-Anonymous Maker. Pair of Fibulae from Tiznit, Morocco, late 19th century, Silver. 17 1/2 x 14 x 1 in.
-Anonymous Maker, Pair of Cuffs from Gujarat, India, undated. Silver. Each: 6 x 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 in.
-Anonymous Maker, Amulet from India, undated. Silver. 16 x 3 x 2 in. (left)
Anonymous Marker, Amulet from India, undated. Silver. 17 3/4 x 1 1/2 x 3 3/4 in. (right)
*All pieces from the Collection of Daniel and Serga Nadler. All photographs by John Bigelow Taylor.
*All images courtesy of MAD.

Describing his creative approach, Amsterdam-based designer Aldo Bakker says, “My objects should be able to create a space around themselves, to define their context on their own. I question their meaning and, hence, their use. In the ideal case, an object acquires a status that legitimises itself independently of the surroundings.”

And these recent Bakker pieces – stool, pourer and salt cellar – have no difficulty standing on their own.

Interestingly, Bakker’s parents were also design standouts. His father, Gijs Bakker, is the founder of Droog Design, a major figurehead of conceptual design, and his late mother, Emmy van Leersum (1930-1984), was a modern jewelry designer.

Here you’ll see, from top to bottom:

-Bakker’s “Stool, Side table and Le lac”: 2009, limited edition of 100, every piece is from a different type of wood, production by Kuperus & Gardenier, produced and distributed by Particles, photography by Erik and Petra Hesmerg;

-”Pourer”: 2009, 100% fine silver, production by Jan Mathesius, distribution by Thomas Eyck, photography by Erik en Petra Hesmerg; and

-”Silver Salt cellar:” 2009 gold plated inside, execution by Jan Mathesius.

For more Aldo Bakker projects, visit aldobakker.com.

*Images courtesy of Aldo Bakker.
H/T Dezeen.