Modern Earrings
Rooted in centuries of history of adornment dating back to the ancient world, modern jewelry reimagines traditional techniques, forms and materials for expressive new pieces. As opposed to contemporary jewelry, which responds to the moment in which it was created, modern jewelry often describes designs from the 20th to 21st centuries that reflect movements and trends in visual culture.
Modern jewelry emerged from the 19th-century shift away from jewelry indicating rank or social status. The Industrial Revolution allowed machine-made jewelry using electric gold plating, metal alloys and imitation stones, making beautiful jewelry widely accessible. Although mass production deemphasized the materials of the jewelry, the vision of the designer remained important, something that would be furthered in the 1960s with what’s known as the “critique of preciousness.”
A design fair called the “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” brought global attention to the Art Deco style in 1925 and gathered a mix of jewelry artists alongside master jewelers like Van Cleef & Arpels, Mauboussin and Boucheron. Art Deco designs from Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels unconventionally mixed gemstones like placing rock crystals next to diamonds while borrowing motifs from eclectic sources including Asian lacquer and Persian carpets. Among Cartier’s foremost design preoccupations at the time were high-contrast color combinations and crisp, geometric forms and patterns. In the early 20th century, modernist jewelers like Margaret De Patta and artists such as Alexander Calder — who is better known for his kinetic sculptures than his provocative jewelry — explored sculptural metalwork in which geometric shapes and lines were preferred over elaborate ornamentation.
Many of the innovations in modern jewelry were propelled by women designers such as Wendy Ramshaw, who used paper to craft her accessories in the 1960s. During the 1970s, Elsa Peretti created day-to-night pieces for Tiffany & Co. while designers like Lea Stein experimented with layering plastic, a material that had been employed in jewelry since the mid-19th century and had expanded into Bakelite, acrylics and other unique materials.
Find a collection of modern watches, bracelets, engagement rings, necklaces, earrings and other jewelry on 1stDibs.
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s North American Modern Earrings
Diamond, South Sea Pearl, Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Mid-20th Century Modern Earrings
Diamond, White Gold
2010s Russian Modern Earrings
Topaz, Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
1990s French Modern Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century American Modern Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Citrine, Diamond, 14k Gold
20th Century French Modern Earrings
Brown Diamond, Opal, Gold, Silver
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Ruby, 14k Gold
2010s Italian Modern Earrings
White Diamond, Black Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
1990s Italian Modern Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Emerald, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Earrings
Emerald, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Sterling Silver
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Peridot, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 10k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 10k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 14k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Emerald, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Emerald, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 10k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 10k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 10k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sterling Silver
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Ruby, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, 10k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, Blue Diamond, 14k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Earrings
Coral, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Earrings
Gold, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Turquoise, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Earrings
Diamond, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Earrings
14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Earrings
Diamond, Malachite, Turquoise, 18k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indonesian Modern Earrings
Tanzanite, Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Sterling Silver
1970s Swiss Vintage Modern Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Earrings
Diamond, Topaz, 14k Gold
1950s American Vintage Modern Earrings
Early 2000s Turkish Modern Earrings
Opal, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
2010s American Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s German Modern Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Gold, Enamel
1990s American Modern Earrings
18k Gold, Platinum