Modern Clip-on 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.
2010s European Modern Clip-on Earrings
Moonstone, Spinel, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, White Gold
1960s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
1980s French Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Mid-20th Century Canadian Modern Clip-on Earrings
20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1950s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
1990s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Zircon, 18k Gold, Gold Plate, Vermeil, Sterling Silver, Enamel
1980s French Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
1960s French Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Mixed Metal
Late 20th Century French Modern Clip-on Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary Dutch Modern Clip-on Earrings
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Turquoise, Diamond, Silver
1960s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Unknown Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Amethyst, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1940s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
White Diamond, Tourmaline, Rubelite, 18k Gold, Rose Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
Gold
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Black Diamond, Spinel, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, Vermeil, Sterling Silver, Enamel
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Clip-on Earrings
Crystal, Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, White Gold
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Early 2000s Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Opal, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
18k Gold, Vermeil, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
1960s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Vermeil, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Onyx, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Lapis Lazuli, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, White Diamond, Yellow Gold, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
Early 2000s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Vermeil, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Garnet, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s French Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Crystal
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Carnelian, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Vermeil, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Clip-on Earrings
Rhodium, Sterling Silver
1970s American Vintage Modern Clip-on Earrings
Mid-19th Century Unknown Antique Modern Clip-on Earrings
2010s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Amethyst, White Diamond, Black Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
2010s Thai Modern Clip-on Earrings
18k Gold, Enamel
20th Century Unknown Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s French Modern Clip-on Earrings
Amber, Pearl, Jasper, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold