Necklace

Marie Zimmermann

1925–35 · Pearls, emerald, colored stones (corundum), and gold · The American Wing

The work of Marie Zimmermann was admired and celebrated in her lifetime, and it continues to attract attention today. Born in Brooklyn in 1879 to an upper middle–class Swiss family, Zimmermann studied at the Art Students League and refined her skills at the Pratt Institute. Although trained in painting and sculpting, she was primarily a metalworker, who liked to say that she made "everything from tiaras to tombstones." She was deeply inspired by the art of the past, often visiting the Metropolitan Museum where she frequented the Greek, Egyptian, and Far Eastern galleries. The present necklace displays Zimmermann’s refined sense of color and design as well as her rich historical vocabulary. The monochromatic creamy white seed pearls are punctuated by brightly-colored gemstones and enameled decoration in red, blue and green—an Egyptian revival palette the artist especially favored. With its mix of Egyptian, Asian, and Indian motifs, it exudes a sense of exoticism, glamour, and sophistication. It is by any measure one of Zimmermann’s most glorious and important jewels.

Artist

Marie Zimmermann

Date

1925–35

Medium

Pearls, emerald, colored stones (corundum), and gold

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Jacqueline Loewe Fowler, 2020