An Introduction to Retro Jewelry: the 1940s
Horst P. Horst for Vogue Magazine, November 1, 1940.
The change and upheaval of the 1940s affected all aspects of life. Production hubs were bombed out, platinum and precious metals regulated for the war effort couldn’t be sold, and craftsman were conscripted into service. If the jewelry of the 1930s was typified by platinum settings all-over set by diamonds and precious stones, than the 1940s would be defined by resourcefulness and the negative space of yellow gold. Large semi-precious stones—like citrine, topaz, aquamarine, and amethyst— could give a massive look for a fraction of the cost of their ruby, diamond, and sapphire counterparts. New alloys which included copper and used less gold gave the jewels a distinctive red tint. The jewelry that was produced included less precious stones and were lighter and less ornate than the pieces that were produced before 1940.
Jewelry was not the only thing changing with the times, women were changing too. Many went to work for the war effort and their floaty feminine fashions of the 1930s evolved into tight, shorter skirts and jackets with sensible, military-inspired silhouettes. Many jewels became a cheeky wink at more masculine aesthetics. Lines of cars and rows of munitions would transform into a link bracelet, a gas pipe would be translated into a necklace, a patriotic parade would turn into a brooch. It is this playfulness and resourcefulness that exemplifies Retro jewels, a welcome placebo for the horrors of war.
The big jewelry houses like Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Tiffany & Co. were still producing throughout the war, albeit in smaller numbers. Other design houses that did some great work in this era include Paul Flato, Verdura, Tony Duquette, and Traeber, Hoeffer, and Mauboussin. These ateliers defined the times with their unique take on jewelry staples turning the expected into the surreal. In spite of or, perhaps because of, the fear and chaos that gripped the world in the 1940s, the Retro jewels nod instead to a whimsical optimism. A much needed dose of hope and humor in an uncertain age.
