Explore the glamour and exquisite craftsmanship of Haute Joaillerie from the Belle Époque to the present day. Vanessa Cron brings high jewellery to life, revealing the context of its creation throughout the twentieth century in this introduction to jewellery design. Encounter the patrons, jewellers and fashions that made Europe the epicentre of influential new styles of jewellery, and see the global reach of high jewellery in the twenty-first century.
Including exclusive interviews with: Chaumet, Mellerio dits Meller, Cartier, Boucheron, Van Cleef & Arpels, Wallace Chan, François Curiel on JAR and Viren Bhagat.
What you will learn:
You will be able to identify jewellery from the Belle Epoque to today by period.
You will know the major fashions and jewellery houses, and understand how each influenced the other to create extraordinary jewels.
You will have been introduced to fashionable royalty, celebrities, magnates and artists whose patronage inspired jewellery designers.
You will have a broad understanding of the importance and mythology behind different gems, materials and motifs used in European jewellery.
You will have seen prominent contemporary jewellers at work, and have gained an insight into their personal inspirations and impact on today’s collectors.
Registration is open for this course, you can register today by clicking on Enrol Now against your preferred course dates in the Course Dates tab.
History of Jewellery Design: 1880 to Now is accompanied by Jewellery: Gemstones, Metal, Fashion, Film and Objets d’art. This course not require prior knowledge and can be studied alongside 1880 to Now or independently. This new course brings more exquisite jewellery to the student, with lectures on great houses, the use of gems and metal, and jewellery in fashion and film. Seven special feature documentaries are also included: in-depth interviews with major jewellery designers.
Watch an excerpt from Session 4: Retro Jewellery, about how French jewellery designers discovered new ways to create exceptional pieces in the aftermath of war.
Online courses are designed for students to study when it is most convenient for them. Our pre-recorded lectures are filmed with documentary-style production values, taking you on a narrative-led journey through your chosen subject.
Each module's lecture lasts for approximately one hour.
Our courses are arranged in modules, containing your lectures and special features. Each week, a new module will open for you to study, allowing you to explore the content at your own pace. Typically, our courses consist of six modules overall.
During your time on the course, your Tutor will provide:
Frequent art world announcements.
Opportunities to ask questions and request tutor guidance.
Tutor-initiated networking discussions with icebreaker questions and art world news.
Art History courses have optional written assignments with detailed and supportive individual feedback to help develop ideas and enrich analytical skills and understanding.
Art Business and Luxury courses have optional multiple-choice assignments to consolidate learning and track progress.
Further benefits
Handouts and English subtitles are provided to reinforce your learning.
Networking and knowledge-share opportunities with fellow online course participants and alumni.
You have three weeks after the course has finished to complete your assignments and discuss the course with your tutor.
All video lectures and course materials remain available to students for six months after assignments close.
If you complete all the assignments and complete the course, you will receive a Certificate of Completion. Certificates are not available for self-directed courses.
Frequent livestreamed seminars for students and alumni on topics that span the art world. Seminars are led by alumni, your tutor, and art world professionals.
Additional Information
The course will require between two to three hours of study time per week. There will be further reading and weekly assignments.
Technical Requirements
The course is facilitated through an online learning environment that is compatible with most modern browsers. It is the responsibility of students to have the proper hardware and software required to participate, along with access to WiFi. The basic technical requirements can be found in the FAQs.
Terms and Conditions
Please ensure you read carefully through our terms and conditions before enrolling on a course.
‘The programme was more than worth it. I feel super confident now. This will help me in my Appraisal Career and take me to the next level as designer.’
‘I loved the course and have already recommended it to several people :)’
‘Very effective in its use of media, high quality video, great speakers, effective online system that worked well on computer and mobile device.’
‘It is useful for those who love jewelry design and want to make it as career.’
‘All the videos were very well produced. Especially when featuring the jewelry pieces. They looked amazing through the videos. The interviews with the Haute Jewelry Houses are very insightful and definitely something rare because not everyone can get to talk to those directors/managers. It was a great way to have some "direct" communication with them.’
‘I haven't taken an online course like this one before. It's completely different, as I normally study these subjects through text and pictures. The videos and interviews really helped out.’
‘This course did not just show beautiful examples of jewels from each era, but explained the historical context of each time period. This was essential to understanding why different styles developed and why and how a jewel came to be. It was fascinating to learn about the connections and collaborations between various creative individuals in different fields and how they came together to form one movement in their time. I thought this course was well structured and extremely engaging.’
‘Quite honestly I thought everything about the course is fantastic.’
‘Thank you for having such course. This actually made me move forward get inspired and start a new line. Now I know more I am more educated!’
‘I liked the images of the pieces that I would not otherwise have easy access to. The interviews were fantastic, the range of periods, the focus on particular style icons and jewelry artists, and the presentation in video form.’
‘I would recommend the course, and I already did ;-)’
‘The videos are amazing. Vanessa Cron is very charming and I think she has given true value in all the videos she has made.’
‘This program was different on its own way, I mean I expected it to be like this since it’s from Christie’s. It was Magnificent. I felt like I am in virtual tour to Belle Époque, Art Nouveau, Art Deco....It was seriously real. Enjoyed the program and learnt a lot in classroom feel.’
'Perfect. Very easy to watch.'
'As a sales professional in jewelry and watches, I would recommend this course to my clients.'
'I especially like the exclusive photos of all the jewellery items especially for the era of Belle Époque and Art Nouveau which are difficult to come by.'
'The interviews with major jewellery house are also precious and very helpful with the understanding of the course materials.'
'I liked the quality of the video most. The high resolution images were fabulous.'
'I hadn't taken an online course before. The course was great, especially the layout of each module in a pattern of chapters and the knowledge and presentation style of the tutor Vanessa Cron.'
'An excellent course. Lots of rich information and interesting facts of the time periods of jewelry is given to us. I feel a better understanding of the different periods of jewelry.'
'This course is strongly supported by imagery, illustrations and other visual materials that help the learner to memorize the outlines and the contents throughout the narration.'
'Being a Graduate Gemologist and ASA jewelry appraiser in the works. I found great interest and a grasp of the history of jewelry.'
'Very enjoyable.'
'Straight to the point, modern, appealing and interesting.'
'I particularly enjoyed the fact that each period was put back into a larger social and historical context, key to understand the evolution of Jewellery.'
'I would recommend the teaching, the course set up, the content and the quick responses to any questions asked.'
'It was a privilege to gain a deeper insight into the history of the most important jewellery houses, their notable clients, their heritage and the favourite pieces of the interviewee. All these interviews including those with contemporary jewellery designers and Francois Curiel were very personal offering a look behind the scenes.'
'The story telling and historical contexts of the jewels are fascinating. The scenery of Paris and the interviews with the Maisons enhanced my understanding.'
'I would recommend everything about the course.'
'Videos were well made, informative and entertaining.'
'The course content was concise and highly relevant.'
'I especially like the exclusive photos of all the jewellery items especially for the era of Belle Époque and Art Nouveau which are difficult to come by.'
'Overall I enjoyed the course very much!'
'The instruction was engaging and informative.'
'Everything was perfect.'
'I have been inspired to carry on learning about the history of jewellery design.'
'Overall, the course was an excellent learning experience. It was extremely well structured. I very much appreciated the pattern of the subchapters, which was repeated to give an encompassing and versatile impression of the individual periods.'
'I very much like the way the subject matter was composed to the smallest detail: each week Vanessa wore a piece of jewellery representing the individual period.'
'I very much enjoyed this course and would recommend it to anyone who is passionate about jewels.'
'The course is really informative and I really learnt a lot from it.'
'Very informative and clear as compared to other school.'
'The teaching was excellent.'
'It's fun, people can do it at their own pace and it's high quality.'
'I loved the interviews and the explanation of the jewelry houses' history.'
'The course was clear and very interesting.'
'It's a great starting point for learning about the history of jewelry design.'
'This course gives a brilliant outline and understanding of the eras in jewellery history and the evolution of its style with reference to historical content.'
'I would recommend this course for people who want a starting out point of jewellery history.'
'I could have spent a week binge watching the whole thing at once.'
'The course was wonderful for a large audience around the world. This was a difficult and delicate course to create and collect the interviews.'
'I would highly recommend this course. The examples you presented from recent or upcoming auctions are wonderful.'
'I loved the interviews. The passion of the curators oozed through time and France to my tiny screen in Missouri.'
'This was a chance to enter to a new world in jewellery. I really like it!'
‘This program was different on its own way, I mean I expected it to be like this since it’s from Christie’s. It was Magnificent. I felt like I am in virtual tour to Belle Époque, Art Nouveau, Art Deco....It was seriously real.’
