2026 GEM Awards Honor London Jewelers, Ana Khouri, and Industry Icons

Linda Evangelista handed Ana Khouri her award. That single moment, supermodel presenting sculptor-jeweler at a sold-out black-tie gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on March 13, captured something essential about where fine jewelry stands in 2026: fully embedded in the cultural conversation, no longer adjacent to fashion but central to it.

The 24th annual GEM Awards, organized by Jewelers of America and chaired by Marion Fasel of The Adventurine, distributed honors across five categories, with the evening's emotional anchor being the Lifetime Achievement award presented to Mark and Candy Udell of London Jewelers. The Udells built one of American retail's most enduring luxury jewelry businesses, and the recognition placed their careers in the company of the industry's foundational figures.

Khouri's GEM Award for High Jewelry Excellence arrived with the kind of institutional backing that clarifies an artist's standing. "Through a sculptural approach rooted in fine art, Ana Khouri has established a distinct and influential voice within high jewelry, defined by exceptional craftsmanship and ethical materials," said Amanda Gizzi, senior vice president of corporate affairs for Jewelers of America. Khouri's practice is built on Fairmined 18k gold, platinum, and ethically sourced gemstones, and her exhibition history runs through Phillips, Sotheby's, Christie's, and TEFAF New York. That The Row has featured her work places her at the precise intersection of jewelry-as-object and jewelry-as-fashion-statement.

The remaining category winners were announced live at the gala. Sylvia Furmanovich took the GEM Award for Jewelry Design, prevailing over nominees Cece Fein-Hughes and Catherine Sarr. Thomas Waller won Media Excellence, with Nicole Martine Chapoteau and Emili Vesilind among those nominated. Jessica McCormack claimed Retail Innovation over Day's Jewelers and Emily Chelsea Jewelry, a win that positions her London-rooted, New York-present brand as the retail model the industry is watching most closely.

The David Yurman GEM Awards Grant went to emerging designer Johnny Nelson. David Yurman framed the grant's purpose in terms that went beyond philanthropy: "What truly sets Johnny apart is the meaning embedded in his work. His designs fuse his own heritage, identity, and artistry, creating pieces that spark conversation and invite reflection." That language, identity-rooted craft as the next frontier of jewelry design, may prove to be the evening's most forward-looking statement.

The 2026 committee included representatives from the Natural Diamond Council, De Beers Group, CHANEL, Greenwich St. Jewelers, National Jeweler, Harwell Godfrey, and JCK & LUXURY, among others. The breadth of that roster reflects how deliberately Jewelers of America has positioned the GEM Awards as a cross-sector referendum on excellence, not a trade insiders' dinner, but a genuine industry reckoning with who and what deserves to matter next.