In conversation withRepossi
Designer Interview
13·01·2023
When Gaia Repossi took over design at Italian heritage jewelry house Repossi in 2007, she redefined the brand's look to speak to a new, style-led generation of women and men. Since then, the brand has gone from strength to strength and the Rem Koolhaas-designed flagship is now a refreshingly modern presence on Place Vendôme, historically the center of the European fine jewelry industry.
From the Antifer pavé ring stacks to the Berber ear cuff, Repossi has become a watchword for a certain kind of enviable Parisian chic. Jewels are made in the same Italian workshops that the company has used for over 40 years and it's this symbiotic relationship between designer and craftsman that enables the house to produce beautifully worked contemporary pieces that exude effortless cool. The house was originally founded in Turin, Italy in 1957 and three generations of designers helped make its name, before Alberto Repossi brought the company to Paris in 1986.
His daughter, Gaia, was named Artistic Director at the age of 21 and brought with her a creative vision that represented a turning point in the house's history, with a move towards more avant-garde contemporary fine jewelry with a rebellious edge. Gaia was one of the first designers to take ear adornment higher up the cartilage and her signature ear cuffs bring subtle diamond sparkle to the whole of the ear.
Black gold gives delicate pavé a hint of punk, while elsewhere, diamonds appear to float across hands, down décolletages and up ears, with the novel Serti sur Vide invisible diamond setting technique. Generations of craftsmanship come together in timeless pieces that represent a break with history, and will no doubt appeal to many more generations to come.
How would you describe the look you have created for Repossi?
I wanted to bring the brand’s image closer to fashion and create trends, while reinventing new codes for a new femininity.
As the most avant-garde jewelry house on Place Vendôme, how do you balance Repossi's longstanding heritage with the needs of a modern clientele?
Quality craftsmanship is a luxury I have been able to make the most of - without it, design would be irrelevant and impossible to do well. This is how timeless pieces and style signatures are created.
“ Rethinking jewelry means rethinking the way we approach it and coming up with new ideas and concepts. “
You brought the ear cuff back into vogue before anyone else. Why do you think this piece appeals so much to the Repossi woman?
Rethinking jewelry means rethinking the way we approach it and coming up with new ideas and concepts. For a modern, intelligent woman (with today's new codes) who doesn't want to feel over-adorned, wearing something over the ear with a punk accent instead of a pendant from the lobe, was a stylistic surprise that was needed. I love putting diamonds where people don't expect to find them.
What are the biggest inspirations behind your work?
Tribal ornaments because they resonate in such a modern way with punk, sculpture and street movements and trends, to name but a few.
What are your own jewelry classics? Personally speaking, what do you wear the most?
My 12-row black gold pavé mobile Antifer prototype ring, and pieces from my recent collaboration with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation; the Jetty rings and bracelet that I wear every day, as well as the flag ring.
Who wears your jewelry the best?
I have been lucky to see plenty of cool women and men wearing it. Fabulous people like my friend Cindy Sherman, Rihanna, Isabelle Huppert, and close friends such as Meadow Walker, Paul Hameline and Lotta Volkova.
