BEJEWELLED BLOOMS
From the sculptures of Palazzo Massimo and the ceiling mosaics of the Santa Costanza mausoleum, to the garden frescoes of Villa di Livia, the four-petalled flower is a recurring motif in some of Rome’s most storied structures.
In the Roman Empire, the bloom was looked upon as a symbol of joy and grace, both of which are qualities that Italian brand Bvlgari seeks to imbue into its finejewellery collections. The latest of these is Fiorever, a coinage that plays on the words “forever” and “fiore”, from the Italian term for flower.
The collection is made up of rings, earrings, bracelets and necklaces in white, yellow and pink gold. Each jewel is adorned with a wild bloom with a centre solitaire of up to 0.5 carats. Some feature a delicate sprinkling of diamonds along the petals, which are affixed by the brand’s master cra smen in an eyepleasing upward tilt. Using only the highest-quality stones – colours D through F, and IF-VVS clarity – the 24-piece collection establishes the four-petal flower as an official symbol of the jewellery house alongside its serpent and fan-shaped motifs. In fact, Fiorever marks Bvlgari’s first entirely new collection in four years, although the jewellery house is constantly updating its Serpenti, Diva’s Dream and B. Zero1 lines.
The campaign for the new collection was shot by Mario Sorrenti, the Italian photographer who lives in New York, and it stars Spanish actress Úrsula Corberó as the face of Fiorever. Over the decades, the 134-yearold company has shone a spotlight on some of the world’s most fashionable women, and some of these ambassadors joined Corberó in Dubai recently for the global launch of the collection, which was held at La Spiaggia in the Bvlgari Resort.
Also in attendance were Bvlgari chief executive Jean-Christophe Babin, former ambassadors Lady Kitty Spencer, Hikari Mori and Nadine Nassib Njeim, as well as model Gabrielle Caunesil, actress Matilde Gioli, and fashion influencers Paola Alberdi and Fil Xiaobai. Regional celebrities included Egyptian actress Tara Emad, Lebanese producer Diala Makki, and Emirati television host Mahira Abdel Aziz.
Pretty and powerful people aside, the Fiorever launch marked Bvlgari’s commitment to what the brand calls “bold creativity”, with Japanese botanical sculptor Azuma Makoto fashioning a large spherical floral carving inside a giant box, which was dramatically opened to reveal both the jewels and a bejewelled Corberó.