Between heritage and modernity, Bvlgari Tubogas unveils new pieces
The fruit of 140 years of know-how, the Bvlgari Tubogas collection unveils 16 new pieces in yellow gold that push the boundaries of their art.
While it is now quite common to offer yellow gold jewellery in high jewelry, in the 1950s, platinum dominated exceptional creations. Avant-garde, Bvlgari already distinguished itself at the time with its yellow gold pieces that recalled the warm tones and light of Italian landscapes. Its Turbogas technique - flexible gold bands that fit together without any welding - is reborn today in a new collection of 16 pieces, sometimes sober like this refined bracelet, sometimes loaded like this flexible choker necklace with diamond-set studs.
In homage to the designs of the 1970s, Bvlgari also imagines a set that incorporates the geometric Parentesi motif, inspired by the sidewalks of Rome. In the same spirit, a new watch - with a black lacquered dial and a bracelet in yellow gold, white gold and rose gold - combines the supple tubular structure of the Tubogas bracelet with a yellow gold case engraved with the double logo inspired by the coins of ancient Rome. The highlight of the show, a necklace stands out with its colored stones: a tanzanite, a rubellite and a green tourmaline, all framed by geometric inserts in hard stone and refined diamond.
It was in 1948 that Bvlgari began experimenting with the Tubogas technique, to create the bracelet for its very first Serpenti jewellery watch, worn by Elizabeth Taylor in Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s Cleopatra (1963). Tubogas—named after the pipes used to transport pressurized gas in the 1920s—has since graced many Bvlgari creations. And who better than Lucia Silvestri, Director of Creation & Stone Purchasing, to tell the fabulous story of this iconic technique? Coming to Paris with two goldsmiths from the Bvlgari Valenza manufacture (out of only 20 people in the world trained in this technique), she provided live commentary on the different stages of creating a Tubogas piece.
Finally, to convey the suppleness of these creations, Bvlgari called upon dancers: sinuous curves and bodies in motion recall the fluidity of the pieces in the collection. Photographer and director Julien Vallon captured this moment, creating the new Icon campaign, where Bvlgari ambassador Hikari Mori highlights these visionary creations. A fitting tribute to Bvlgari's Greco-Roman heritage, whose founder, Sotirio Bulgari, was originally a goldsmith.
