At Tiffany & Co. in New York City, hidden amongst jewelry that cost more than my mortgage payment is a lesser-known gem: an art exhibition called the Culture of Creativity. The exhibit showcases artwork from artists whose works can be found on the walls of the jewelry store at 727 Fifth Ave, also known as The Landmark. My humble credit card limit didn’t allow me to leave the store with any diamonds, but here’s what I learned about the exhibit.
The Culture of Creativity showcases artists whose artworks are featured on the walls of the Tiffany & Co. store.
Known as The Landmark, the flagship Tiffany & Co. store reopened in 2023 after an extensive renovation. The Landmark is designed as a retail space, an exhibition space, and a very expensive refuge from people like me who cannot afford jewelries with 5-digit price tags. The experience of walking into the store feels uncomfortably exclusive and glamorous, which are fitting characteristics for a store that sits on the corner of one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world, Fifth Avenue.
Known as The Landmark, the store is one of Manhattan’s largest and the interior was redesigned by leather-lover and architect Peter Marino.
At the 10-story Tiffany & Co., stare at the stairs and the stairs will stare back like those weird optical illusions that trap people’s souls. The sculptural staircase was inspired by jewelry designer Elsa Peretti, and sits in the middle of the store surrounded by a wall of mirrors for anyone who wishes to see a reflection of their net worths as they walk down the steps.
Architectural firm OMA, led by Shohei Shigematsu, renovated the building’s core including the exhibition space where the Culture of Creativity takes place. The interiors of the store, on the other hand, were reimagined by famed architect Peter Marino. Marino curated the Culture of Creativity exhibit.
Visitors can grab a pamphlet embellished with Tiffany’s signature color, Tiffany Blue.
Tiffany Blue is officially described as “robin’s-egg blue hue” but, for the unrefined like me, it’s really just a bright turquoise. The color mimics the color of jewelry that Victorian brides would give their bridesmaids in the old days. Today, the color is instantly recognized on their jewelry boxes or, what Tiffany calls, the Tiffany Blue Box.
The exhibition begins with 19th-century Tiffany silver, which holds significance in Tiffany’s history of jewelry making.
During the 1850s, Tiffany became the first American company to follow the English sterling standard (.925) in American-made silver. Their journey into silverware started in 1851, where they contracted silversmith John C. Moore to design and produce silver tablewares, which would later boost Tiffany’s popularity in the growing American demand for silverware.
All the artworks in the exhibit are from the Peter Marino Art Foundation, curated by Peter Marino over 40 years of collecting.
The Peter Marino Art Foundation contains more than 200 artworks from 3500 BC to today. For those who want to see more of the artists featured in this exhibit, the foundation’s home in the former Rogers Memorial Library in Southampton, NY, is open to the public for tours.
Marino prefers art that’s bold and colorful, and that remained true in this exhibit.
While Marino is known as the architect who wears all-black simple leather clothing, it’s said that he prefers art with unusual combination of colors, patterns, or textures.
The exhibition spans the 8th and 9th floors of the Tiffany store in an open column-free double-height exhibition space.
The Culture of Creativity exhibition is on display from March 4, 2023 through May 20, 2023.
Two floors are connected by a spiral staircase with handrails wrapped in Marino’s favorite clothing material: leather.
The main sculpted staircase that connects floors three through eight of The Landmark also feature leather-wrapped handrails, possibly influenced by Marino’s fondness for all-leather outfits. His leather-daddy biker look is said to be inspired by his passion for motorcycles, but I like to believe it was actually inspired by something a bit more… kinky-er.
A flock of sheep sits in the middle of the exhibit, part of the “Grand Moutons de Peter” named after Peter Marino.
François-Xavier Lalanne created the Grands Moutons de Peter (“Peter’s Grand Sheep”) based on Marino’s fascination with the Golden Fleece mythology. Marino pictured a flock of golden-woolled fleece with shimmering bodies and Lalanne brought his idea to life with sculptures of sheep, each adorned in gilt bronze from head to hoof.
Works by 26 artists are featured at the exhibit, where you might also find art-goers like me who dream of owning a piece of fine art.
One of those artists featured is Molly Hatch. LVMH and Peter Marino commissioned Hatch to design the ceramic artwork for the Blue Box Cafe located on the 6th floor of the building, in addition to other areas of the store. Hatch was also asked to design several more jewel-inspired works for Tiffany & Co. Dubai, as part of the store’s reopening.
The exhibit displays nearly 70 works from the Peter Marino Art Foundation.
There’s even artwork made by Peter Marino himself.
Peter Marino has a long reputation of including commissioned contemporary art in his architectural designs. Inside The Landmark, some of the artists featured have helped shaped and influenced Tiffany’s jewelry designs. The art ranges from visual artist Claude Lalanne to contemporary artist Rashid Johnson. There are even works by Marino himself. Because nothing is more humbling than showing off all the art you own inside an art exhibit, named after you, that you architected.
Don’t forget to stop by the bathroom. It’s arguably one of the nicest (and humane) restrooms I’ve seen in New York.
It’s possibly bigger than my apartment. There’s an automatic toilet, beautiful natural tiles, and Diptyque’s Softening Hand Wash and Velvet Lotion for customers. Because the only suitable fingers that can carry exquisite Tiffany jewels are ones that are well-scented and well-moisturized.
