Art fans will be gripped by one of the USA’s most significant jewellery collections

Since 1950, the Dallas Museum of Art has quietly been building a collection of contemporary jewellery. Many of the pieces, spanning various mediums, have rarely been seen, something that has now been addressed with a major exhibition presenting more than 350 wearable artworks.

‘Constellations: Contemporary Jewelry from the Dallas Museum of Art’, on show at the Chrysler Museum of Art in Virginia, is now displaying what amounts to one of the USA’s most significant jewellery collections. Encompassing hundreds of pieces from over 230 artists, from 41 countries, the collection speaks to the breadth of creativity among artists focusing exclusively on a wearable medium.

‘More than a survey of contemporary jewelry, “Constellations” celebrates artists’ ability to expand the boundaries of wearable art through innovation and creativity,’ says Mark A Castro, director of curatorial affairs at the Chrysler Museum.

Works here are occasionally playful, from crowns of gold that appear to be cardboard, to an embrace of unusual materials such as photographs, wire and plastic. There are brooches shaped like toast, rings of nylon and a composting collar, created from egg box cartons. The jewellery artwork, divided into four themes – Zones of the Body, Archetypes, Signals and Play – invites visitors to trace the history of jewellery as an eclectic form of artistic expression.

Adds Castro: ‘The exhibition invites audiences to embrace the full range of the medium’s potential – to engage serious issues while also fostering playfulness and delight.’

‘Constellations: Contemporary Jewelry from the Dallas Museum of Art’ is on view at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia, until 3 January 2027

chrysler.org