Jewellery by Roberto Coin is very memorable because of its sparkling humour and uncompromising quality. The Italian jeweller who founded the company under his own name in 1977 has a motto: to make jewellery not like the others. He totally succeeds in that. Fans of his jewellery include many celebrities like Uma Thurman, Nicole Kidman, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sharon Stone, Jennifer Lopez, Charlize Theron, Sarah Jessica Parker, Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, Halle Berry, Denise Richards and etc.
– Roberto, you, like the mythological King Midas, turn everything to excellent masterpieces of gold: a golden dress, golden handbag, golden sneakers and even a pure gold Pass for Cannes. Where do you find inspiration?
– I try not to do something that has already been done before. If it exists in nature, I’m not interested. Nobody ever managed to gild leather and make sneakers. The problem was how to make it well, so that the shoes would be wearable.
– What technology did you use?
- It’s a secret. I’ll tell you one thing: nobody has ever done this before. Gilding steel is easy and many people have done it successfully. The masters used to gild wood. But nobody imagined that sneakers could be gilded, too. It’s 24-carat gold that’s applied as a layer, not as a sheet. Which is even more precious: a thin layer of gold with a protective shield. The golden fastening features a ruby; the ruby colour was used for the velvet inset that protects the upper heel. What we have as a result is golden sneakers for a modern girl, not the crystal Cinderella shoes.
– Please tell us about your charity activities.
– Since 24 I’ve been always trying to take the money away from the rich and give it to the poor. In Mexico they even call me Robin Hood. When I was in Guatemala with Ashley Judd, Salma Hayek and Rigoberta Menchu, the Guatemalan Noble Peace Prize recepient, and a famous Columbian singer, we decided to gather some money for charity. We even got the drug dealers involved: they had to pay us to get a photograph with us. If they paid little the photo was small; for a bigger donation the photo was huge, though. I like helping children and people in general. It’s sad when you can’t earn enough for living.
Last year we had an advertising campaign with top model Christy Turlington to support children with AIDS who got infected from their parents – YouthAIDS. The campaign took place in Africa, India and Russia. It was a huge cause and we managed to collect $700,000. We didn’t give the money though: we bought the medicine and sent it to the sick kids.
Meeting important people and collecting money for charity has become a part of my life. Every year I try to devote enough time to that. I like people with money, but they have to be smart and have a kind heart.
– Looking at your collections one can see that you like the number 100 (Cento, a 100-faceted diamond, Neiman Marcus 100-year anniversary collection). Do you believe in numerology?
– Yes I do. There's a way to view life through numbers. According to this point of view the year 2008 will be special. Also you must have in mind that it’s a leap year. That’s how I see it: 2007 = 2 plus 7 is 9, but the mathematics module control rule says that 9 is 0, which means nothing. 2008 = 2 plus 8 is 10. 1 plus 0 is 1, which means the beginning of a new life. When you say 100% you mean total perfection. Because 100 is the number of perfection, for me it’s a perfect number.
My philosophy is very positive. I wake up smiling every day and go to sleep smiling every day, and I’m always sure that tomorrow will be much better than today. I live well and all the people around me are always happy. My business is 90% female. Women are smarter and more efficient. The success of my business relies on women.
- Roberto, do your Venetian roots influence your view of the world and your work?
– As you know, I used to work in the hotel business. This business was tremendously successful. But after I turned 33 I changed my sphere of work, entered the fashion world, came back to Italy and started learning from the great masters of jewellery art. When I knew that I was ready to found my own jewellery brand and had enough knowledge to do so, I did it. To me it was important to create something that nobody had done before. I created my own style and vision that was completely different from that of the others, because the atmosphere around me was totally different. I was more in love with fashion that hotel business and made a 180-degree change in business. This is my Italian blood and I can’t escape it. My ancestors have lived in Venice since 1503. They came to Venice from the Spanish town of Coin.
– To your mind, what is the difference between the Italian and French, Asian, British or Russian jewellery tradition?
Italy has created jewellery since the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. During the Renaissance there were 84 regions in Italy where every prince, princess and their children needed the best clothes, footwear, art, food, jewellery, houses and horses. Consequently, the desire to create all the best things had become a tradition for the Italian people: they want to see beautiful houses, churches, paintings and everything pretty around. Italy has over 5000 jewellery workshops – no other country has this much. France undoubtedly has wonderful jewellery, but many French jewellers had studied the craft in Italy; the same goes for England. Italy is the mother of all jewellery traditions. We created fashion. It’s not like we’re better than the rest of the world, it’s just that we have more experience. Today the world design is 50% Italian.
– What is the secret of your great creativeness?
- I think it’s the freedom of thought and fantasy. The future belongs to people who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Dream in the positive away, and all you problems will be solved.
Natalia Andrianova
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