Design Art and Photography

Textured metal, rose gold and the use of negative space, all of which are seen in these pieces by Vendorafa, are trends in the Gold Expressions Collection.

New York–The Italian jewelry presented each January in Vicenza is considered a prologue to the design story that will play out over the course of the year for the whole industry.

So the intricately textured pendants, heavy-on-the-metal cocktail rings and vibrant infusion of rose gold and colored-gemstone pieces that debuted on Monday as part of the “Gold Expressions” Italian jewelry preview event at the American Airlines Theater in New York received extra scrutiny from the editors and industry members in attendance.

Hosted by the World Gold Council (WGC), the Vicenza Fair and AngloGold Ashanti, the world’s second largest gold mining company, the event is now in its sixth year.

The pieces in this year’s collection, culled from 48 Italian manufacturers, are not just based upon the whimsy of designers, but are the fruits of a research-based product development designed to both promote the “Made in Italy” brand and to catch the fancies of consumers worldwide.

The process began in April when the WGC shared its global consumer research with the Italian design community at an industry seminar in Vicenza. Additional trend forecasting information from the Worth Global Style Network and a presentation by designer Beatriz Biagi on how to apply trend and research information to new product design lent more insight to Italian designers.
 
“The continuing success of the [Gold Expressions] collections and their nationwide distribution through wholesale partner Richline Group demonstrates the effectiveness of this unique research-based approach to product development,” WGC U.S. Managing Director John Calnon said in a media release.

Key trends this year include the use of textured gold, negative space, cutouts, filigree, rose gold, colored gemstones and enamel. Geometric shapes, including circles, squares, discs and spheres, abounded in the Gold Expressions collection, as did a range of links in varied and unusual shapes.

The Richline Group, now America’s largest gold jewelry supplier, has acquired the exclusive distribution rights for the Gold Expressions designs from a large majority of the participants in the collection. It plans to merchandise the Gold Expressions Collection tagline “Italian Passion by Design.”

The collection will launch at the VicenzaOro First show, to be held from Jan. 11-18 in Vicenza, Italy, and will go on an international tour that includes stops in the Far East, India, the Middle East, Russia and, finally, back in the United States for the Las Vegas shows in late May.