Modern Beaded Necklaces
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.
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Early 1900s Italian Antique Modern Beaded Necklaces
Early 2000s Australian Modern Beaded Necklaces
South Sea Pearl
20th Century French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold
1960s Unknown Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Mixed Metal
20th Century Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Emerald, Onyx, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Diamond, Freshwater Pearl, Tanzanite, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Beaded Necklaces
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
1940s American Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Gilt Metal, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold...
Late 20th Century Hong Kong Modern Beaded Necklaces
Amber, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Black Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Sterling Silver
2010s Modern Beaded Necklaces
14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Ruby, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Beaded Necklaces
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Beaded Necklaces
Citrine, White Diamond, Multi-gemstone, Quartz, Blue Topaz, Yellow Gold,...
2010s British Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold, 9k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Sterling Silver
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Labradorite, Gold, 14k Gold
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Modern Beaded Necklaces
Brass
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Onyx, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Black Diamond, Onyx, Rock Crystal, 18k Gold
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Citrine, Pearl, 18k Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Amazonite, Chalcedony, Quartz, Vermeil
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Onyx, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Black Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Beaded Necklaces
Garnet, Multi-gemstone, Quartz, Blue Topaz, Citrine, Crystal, Diamond, W...
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Beaded Necklaces
Amethyst, Crystal, White Diamond, Multi-gemstone, Blue Topaz, Gold, 18k ...
20th Century Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Jade, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Black Pearl, South Sea Pearl, White Gold
20th Century French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Natural Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century European Modern Beaded Necklaces
1970s French Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Crystal, Gilt Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Opal, 18k Gold, White Gold
1980s French Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Natural Pearl, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s Japanese Modern Beaded Necklaces
Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Black Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Sapphire, Pearl, Sterling Silver
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Natural Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Unknown Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Onyx, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Multi-gemstone, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Natural Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold