Face Time: Surrealist Jewels Inspired by Facial Features

BY JOHANNAH MASTERS

Surrealism became all the rage in jewelry design in the 1930s. Artist Salvador Dalí, who collaborated on surrealist jewelry designs with Verdura founder Fulco di Verdura, was the seminal figure. Later, Elsa Schiaparelli, founder of the iconic fashion house of the same name, pushed Surrealism in jewelry and fashion forward—and current Schiaparelli creative director Daniel Roseberry continues to play with the maison’s outré Surrealist codes, which are most evident in the house’ glistening gold jewelry, which showcases gilded pieces with eyes, ears, and noses (see some modern Schiaparelli below).

But Roseberry is far from the only jewelry designer working with anatomical Surrealist motifs. What follows below are a few of our favorite Surrealistic new jewels that focus on the face. Some lean into luxurious whimsy, such as Edina Kiss’s animated Eye earrings and Sanct Desiderata’s covetable Fiend Antonio one-of-a-kind pendant (see both below). While others are more subtle, like Anthony Lent’s Kiss Me ring, which features a pair of Surrealistic yellow gold lips protruding from a circular bezel (also below). Enjoy!