60 years after its debut, Tiffany & Co. reimagines the iconic Bird on a Rock

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How do you reinterpret an icon?

It’s a question Nathalie Verdeille pondered when she looked to create a new chapter for Jean Schlumberger’s famous Bird on a Rock jewelry motif.

“For the first time in our history, we’ve reimagined the iconic Bird on a Rock — originally a high jewelry piece — into an extraordinary fine jewelry collection,” says Verdeille, the chief artistic officer of Tiffany & Co. “This presented an opportunity to explore its essence in two distinct ways: one grounded in naturalism and the other, abstraction.”

Schlumberger, an influential artist whose work runs throughout the DNA of the luxury jewelry brand’s designs, first introduced the quirky cockatoo creation in 1965. He was said to have been inspired by a yellow bird of the same kind that he’d encountered during his travels.

The fashionable fowl, found perched atop a stunning stone, has become an important pillar for Tiffany & Co., so much so that it’s also the setting for the famous 128.54-carat, cushion-cut fancy yellow Tiffany Diamond.

A design that captured the “whimsy, optimism and vibrant persona” of the bird, according to Verdeille, the reinterpretation required the same preoccupation with all things feathered and fine.

“We studied birds as Jean Schlumberger did — carefully observing their stances, their feathers, the structures of their wings — to create dynamic forms that seem to flutter and perch upon the wearer,” she explains specifically of the high jewelry interpretation.

Recently, the luxury jewelry brand revealed Bird on a Rock by Tiffany. Released in both a high jewelry and fine jewelry collection, the collection signals a further commitment by the company to the motif.

Tiffany & Co., it seems, is ready to bet big on the bird.

In an interview with Postmedia in December 2024 to mark the reopening of its flagship Canadian boutique in Toronto, Anthony Ledru, president and CEO of Tiffany & Co., expressed his belief in the relevance of Schlumberger’s recognizable design.

“If I had to keep one piece on a desert island, I would take the Bird on a Rock,” Ledru said. “I’m obsessed with that bird, because I think it has everything to become a huge business that’s still super-exclusive.”

For the fine jewelry collection, called Wings, Verdeille and her team looked to represent the Bird on a Rock in a more abstract way.

“We looked at this bird from another perspective, distilling it down to its essence — the wing — and stylizing the motif into elegant, abstract patterns,” she says. “These sculptural forms intertwine and unfold in textural creations that are as abstract as they are symbolic.”

This manifests as pieces such as slim band rings decorated with feathers and pave-set stones, and a pendant necklace that playfully dangles a flying bird, set with diamonds and sapphire accents, from a delicate chain.

Both the fine and high jewelry creations pay tribute to Schlumberger’s legacy and imprint at the brand.

“The designs speak to his love of textures and sculptural forms. His mastery was both esthetic and technical, and I sought to honour this balance when designing the new pieces,” Verdeille says. “This collection pays homage to Jean Schlumberger’s signature use of platinum. It is pure, precious and more challenging to work with than white gold. We’ve punctuated the designs with yellow gold, another nod to the designer’s esthetic.

“Multiple setting techniques — up to three in a single piece — create intricate plays of light that further illuminate and animate these birds.”

Each piece is like a wearable work of art, poised to take stylish flight.