Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
With her playfully bold, nature-inspired pieces, Angela Cummings has left a lasting mark on the world of jewelry design. Full of movement and sensational color, her eye-catching collar necklaces, stud earrings and bracelets continue to be favored by red-carpet celebrities and tastemakers the world over.
Cummings was born in Austria in 1944, during a time when her country was being torn apart by war. At the age of three her family moved to America, where she was raised. Returning to her native country as an adult, Cummings studied art in Perugia, Italy, then went on to study jewelry design in Hanau, West Germany. She graduated with a degree in gemology, goldsmithing and jewelry design from Zeichenakademie in 1967.
Cummings returned to the United States after finishing her studies. She marched into legendary American luxury house Tiffany & Co. in New York City and asked for a job. Under the mentorship of Donald Claflin, a designer who’d previously worked for David Webb, Cummings became a respected in-house designer for the brand. Her named collection, Angela Cummings Exclusively for Tiffany & Co., debuted in 1974.
Cummings created sumptuous 18K gold accessories that were inlaid with coral, opal, mother-of-pearl, jade and lapis lazuli. Not unlike the work of Elsa Peretti, who signed an exclusive contract with Tiffany & Co. in 1974, Cummings’ designs — seashell necklaces, maple leaf pendants — drew on the shapes and forms of the natural world.
As her style continued to develop, Cummings integrated silver, precious gemstones and platinum into her work, creating exquisite juxtapositions by mixing the materials with wood and iron. Her pieces increasingly featured more movement-inspired elements — curling vines, crashing waves and billowing cloud forms — that hearkened to the rhythms of nature.
In 1982, People magazine featured Cummings' jewelry and the publicity launched her into the spotlight. Two years later, she established her own business, Angela Cummings Inc., and began to experiment with abstraction in her work, as well as allowing her surroundings in Japan, where she opened several boutiques, to inspire her adornments.
Cummings retired in 2003, making a brief comeback in 2013 to collaborate with Assael Jewelry, for which she created an exclusive line of cultured pearl jewelry.
Find vintage Angela Cummings earrings, necklaces, brooches and other accessories on 1stDibs.
Late 20th Century American Modernist Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Gold, 14k Gold, Rose Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Contemporary Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Silver, Sterling Silver
1980s American Modern Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Turquoise, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
Late 20th Century American Contemporary Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
18k Gold
1980s American Modernist Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Silver, Sterling Silver
20th Century Modern Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Mexican Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Sterling Silver
Late 20th Century American Contemporary Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Turquoise, Gold, 18k Gold
1980s Unknown Modern Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Coral, Lapis Lazuli, Black Jade, Gold, 18k Gold
1980s French Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Silver Plate
Early 2000s American Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Sterling Silver
1990s American Modernist Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Coral, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1970s American Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Yellow Gold
1980s Spanish Contemporary Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
1850s British Victorian Antique Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Silver
1970s American Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Yellow Gold
1980s American Modernist Vintage Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
Gold, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
18k Gold
Late 20th Century Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
18k Gold
Late 20th Century American Contemporary Angela Cummings for Tiffany & Co. Link Necklaces
18k Gold