Paloma: Picasso’s daughter uses jewels as her medium

Kimberley McGee

Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2001 | 8:25 a.m.

She is an international icon of beauty, wealth and mystery.

But Paloma Picasso's large, bold pieces of jewelry are a reflection of the designer who has become a famous name in fashion not because of her father, famed abstract artist Pablo Picasso, but for her own larger-than-life style.

Picasso's jeweled masterpieces are on display at Tiffany & Co. at Bellagio through Sept. 23. The presentation is a glimpse of Paloma Picasso's 22 years as a designer with Tiffany & Co.

Featured in the exhibit are Picasso's contemporary ring collection and the Multi-Cabochon suite, a necklace and bracelet of amethysts, citrines, pink-and-green tourmalines and aquamarines set in 18-karat gold with green-tourmaline earrings, among other large-gem pieces.

Picasso blazed onto the jewelry scene in the early '70s with flair, said Penny Proddow, a jewelry historian and columnist for InStyle magazine.

At the time color in jewelry was used as an accent around silver, gold and diamond backgrounds.

"She was not afraid of color," Proddow said of Picasso. "She opened up color when she started designing."

The stones the young designer used were unusual for the time. She chose large, semiprecious cuts to achieve a rich color.

The large stones, called cabochons, had a smooth, flawless surface so that the gem's color beamed instead of sparkled from the stone, Proddow said.

"Her scale was huge," Prod- dow said. "Everyone (jewelry designers) says they were the first to use semi-precious stones, but the way she used the larger stones, and many together, was completely different than anything before."

That has always been Picasso's intention.

The 52-year-old designer told London's Daily Mail in an interview in December that she never wanted to be simply an artist with a famous name. (Picasso could not be reached for comment for this story.)

"It's a bit awesome to be the daughter of both Picasso and (painter) Francoise Gilot," Picasso said. "But from quite a young age I felt I had to find a niche for myself, one that wouldn't put my work in direct competition with my parents. I also wanted to be recognized for more than just the name I bore."

And she has.

In addition to her jewelry collection for Tiffany & Co., Picasso has designed shoes, perfumes and cosmetics for Cosmair and L'Oreal, home furnishings for Villeroy & Boch and sunglasses for Germany's Metzler Optik.

Proddow said Picasso's designs are splashes of timeless color, style and sophistication.

"Her pieces will always be fashionable," Proddow said. "They are for the super-confident woman who wants her jewelry to be seen, and that's because of the scale of the color, the shine."

The Tiffany & Co. store at Bellagio carries Picasso's elaborate jewelry pieces, as well as the smaller-scale collections of daisies, hearts and X designs.

"That's what's so interesting, she has such a diverse offering," said Suzy Nagle, director of Tiffany & Co. Las Vegas, said.

Prices range from $100 for sterling-silver pieces to upwards of $65,000 and up for more elaborate pieces.

Picasso's wide spectrum is a reflection of the designer's interests, passions and feelings, John Loring, design director for Tiffany & Co., said.

Loring met Picasso at his mother's home in Venice, Italy, more than 30 years ago. Picasso, then a teenager, made an impression on Loring. She wore a simple dress with black patent-leather shoes and one large flower in her hair as an accessory. Picasso was at once innocent and alluring and unforgettable.

"She expressed herself with her clothes," Loring said. "You could tell she was an artist then."

Picasso had yet to find her canvas, but Loring saw potential in the young designer and more than 15 years after their first meeting Loring would provide Picasso with an impressive outlet for her designs.

Picasso eventually grew from using herself as a canvas for expression to jewelry and theater costumes.

She attended college in Paris and became a costume designer for theater productions there in the late '60s.

Designers were dazzled by a necklace she constructed from the rhinestone-encrusted bikinis of dancers from the original production of "Folies Bergere" in Paris.

Her bold sense of self is what would eventually catch the attention of top designers.

"My friends in the industry, like Yves St. Laurent, were always telling me that I was ahead of my time and that I should go into fashion," Picasso told India's Jakarta Post in a 1996 interview. "I decided to do everything around fashion but fashion itself, and that's accessories."

Loring and Picasso had continued to cross paths over the years. He watched as she grew in the art world and found her niche.

In 1979 he asked Picasso to create a table setting for a Tiffany exhibition. The jeweled setting was met with critical acclaim, and a year later Picasso became an exclusive designer for Tiffany & Co.

The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History and the Field Museum of Natural History, both in Chicago, have requested to view the work she has completed for Tiffany & Co.

"Her work is more than jewelry, it's art," Loring said.

Within each design is a self-portrait, Loring said.

"That's what is so good and strong about her designs," he said. "It represents herself and her own personality and how she feels about things."

She designs her pieces to be sensual, glamourous and exciting to touch and wear, Loring said.

"She is saying, 'This is the way I see myself, maybe there is something you will recognize, too.' "