5 Things You Should Know About David Webb

“It took two seconds to decide,” explained Frank Everett, vice chairman of Sotheby’s Jewelry Americas when I asked him how David Webb was chosen to be part of the auction house’s exhibition celebrating 250 Years of American Art & Culture at the Breuer Building on Madison Avenue. “He is the quintessential American, not just his style, but his story.”

Considering the context of the exhibit, it is quite an honor. The presentation of around 38 jewels is situated next to American Views: People and Places, which will be on display with the David Webb until August 17.

Among the array are a copy of the Declaration of Independence, the Victory Clock (on loan from the Cartier Archives) which Pierre Cartier presented to President Roosevelt during World War II. There are also paintings by American masters Andy Warhol and Georgia O’Keeffe and much more.

*Special thanks to Andrew Werner who joined me at Sotheby’s to take the photos below.

The classic American dream arc of David Webb’s story has been kept alive by the company he founded in 1948. It continues to produce the designer’s jewels in New York City in the same mode he worked in until his death from cancer at age 50 in 1975.

Over the last 13 years David Webb’s archivist, Levi Higgs, has centered the designer in the cultural conversation through his vibrant work on Instagram, Substack and at innumerable events.

The dazzling coffee-table book David Webb: The Quintessential American Jeweler by Ruth Peltason is a great source for information and visuals, but it is unfortunately out of print. It can be bought here on the second-hand market for around $450.

Find out about David Webb in 5 essential (and many still little known) facts below. Details range from the designer’s humble beginnings and glam era in Hollywood movies to what inspired his iconoclastic work, how he became one of the most important jewelers in America and a favorite of Jackie Kennedy, Elizabeth Taylor and Diana Vreeland.

When David Webb was an up-and-coming designer, he once stood staring at the windows of Seaman Schepps on Madison Avenue for so long that the older jeweler came outside and hilariously asked him, “David, would you like a chair?”