David Webb and Sotheby’s plan American heritage jewelry exhibition in New York

David Webb and Sotheby’s will bring one of New York’s most assertive jewelry voices into the Breuer building this summer, with “Sotheby’s X David Webb: Mavericks On Madison Avenue” on view from July 1 through August 16 at 945 Madison Avenue. The presentation sits inside Sotheby’s wider “250 Years of American Art & Culture” season, a semiquincentennial program that places fine jewelry alongside American art, craft and design.

The setting sharpens the story. David Webb was founded in New York in 1948 and says its jewelry has been handmade in the city since then, while Sotheby’s says the house helped define a distinctly American voice in fine jewelry by standing apart from European luxury codes. That distinction is especially vivid on Madison Avenue, where David Webb’s store at 942 Madison Avenue sits across the street from Sotheby’s new headquarters in the Breuer building.

The edit leans hard into the Webb signatures that read as the opposite of today’s pared-back jewelry mood: animal patterning, sculptural gold, saturated color and unapologetic scale. Levi Higgs, who heads the David Webb archives, selected the pieces for their summery palette and bold design, and the lineup makes that brief clear. The Delacorte Suite from the late 1950s, the never-before-photographed emerald Cross River ring and the coral Couture choker with white enamel links all push toward ornament as architecture rather than restraint.

Elsewhere, the archive reaches from the 1950s into the 1960s with a never-before-shown aquamarine suite, vintage coral pieces, and emerald and sapphire brooches that feel made for a collector who wants one strong statement rather than a stack of discreet gestures. JCK also noted a newly conceived version of Webb’s Totem necklace, a reminder that the house’s most recognizable forms still invite reinterpretation without losing their heft. For minimalist jewelry devotees, the exhibition offers a useful contrast: these are pieces that reject the 1.5mm band and the tiny hoop in favor of texture, volume and visible handwork.

Tara Rowghani, co-owner of David Webb, said the collaboration celebrates the enduring legacy of American design and New York’s role as a center of creativity and entrepreneurship. Frank Everett, Sotheby’s vice chairman of jewelry, called the project a full-circle moment and said Webb’s zebra bracelets remain a recurring fascination for buyers, while his personal favorite in the selection is the Anchor brooch. In a season built around American craftsmanship, Webb’s maximalism is not a detour from the minimalist conversation, but a reminder of how much jewelry can still declare.