Bulgari’s new book celebrates women and high jewellery

In partnership with Bulgari

In summer 2021 in Milan, Bulgari celebrated the launch of the spectacular high jewellery and timepiece collection, Magnifica. Now, the maison is taking a considered look at the women who inspired the collection with an aesthetically stunning tome, Bulgari Magnifica: The Power Women Hold. 

Released by Rizzoli New York and edited by fashion stylist Tina Leung, the book encompasses contributions from writers and artists while paying tribute to the essential role of the jewellery artisans, and treating us to an in-depth look at the hypnotising jewels themselves.

For Bulgari’s creative director Lucia Silvestri, who pens the introduction to each of these three sections – Head, Heart, and Hands – the book offers an irresistible opportunity to turn the spotlight on the women behind the jewellery. ‘Magnifica is Bulgari’s answer to these new times, a celebration of rebirth and the beginning of a new renaissance spreading a message of joy, creativity and artistic perfection,’ she says. ‘We took inspiration from magnificent muses, and of course from Rome, which is always our first muse, but also from sublime gems and intelligent hands that craft our masterpieces and turn them into works of art.’

Contributors, from social entrepreneur Amanda Nguyen to actress Aisha Dee, activist Whembley Sewell, DJ Mia Moretti and many others, reflect on what it means to be a woman while acknowledging the power high jewellery codes can provide. ‘These women have traced a path that is an example and an encouragement for today’s women to pursue their intuitions and cultivate their talent like a true gift of nature,’ says Silvestri.

Above all, the book is an homage to the exquisite jewels themselves, with the dazzling culmination of years of intricate craftsmanship explored in brilliantly vivid photography. When intertwined with a tribute to the female muses who have rethought what being a woman can mean – baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi, Chinese writer Eileen Chang and architect Zaha Hadid have all made an impression on the maison – the end result is a powerful one. ‘Created by women for women, Magnifica is a tribute to the pioneering, indomitable female personalities that, with their fierce vision and independent attitude, blazed their own paths, broke boundaries or shattered cultural norms in different fields,’ says Silvestri.

INFORMATION

Bulgari Magnifica: The Power Women Hold is published by Rizzoli New York

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