“ A book is a gift you can open again and again…”
The invitation to work as art director of jewelry books came from the renowned French journalist Didier Brodbeck. On one of his trips to Paris, Icaro had the opportunity to work with Didier on the content of a book about Brazilian jewelry. Noticing the young professional’s abilities, Icaro becomes the permanent art director of the Dazzling Books collection. Each volume is dedicated to a precious stone, approaching its discovery, its history and its most important pieces made by the most important jewelry brands. To date, 7 volumes have been released in English, Portuguese, Frances and Mandarim. In the acknoledgements of the Tanzanite book, Didier wrote: “We would like to extend our gratitude to Icaro Carlos, our Sao Paolo-based Brazilian art diretor who spent hundreds of hours gathering materials, chasing down all the contacts, to produce more than 20 versions of the book. In addition to being an excellent art director, Icaro is first and foremost a brilliant young jewelry designer. Fluent in four languages and a recent graduate of the Gemological Institute of America, Icaro launched his own brand in 2014 all the while relentlessly toiling away on the Tanzanite project, spending countless sleepless nights Skyping with Hayley in New York and Didier in France. If the Tanzanite Book is a success, it is greatly due to your multifaceted talents and your dedication.”
After the launch of his book Tanzanite – Born from Lightning in Hong Kong, Didier Brodbeck received a very special invitation: to write a new book on one of the world’s most important brands specialising in South Seas pearls: Jewelmer. The French-Filipino brand is the largest producer of South Seas golden pearls – the rarest in the world!
How to put 40 years of history in a coffee-table book? With a lot of research, texts, a vast archive of photographs, stories and interviews… Icaro was sent to Manila to look after each page of this project along with the executives, directors, photographers and founders. After 3 years, the final project – a book of more than 120 pages, with a story never before told and illustrated with unique jewels (one of a kind). The book was released in December 2021
Since it’s discovery in 1902 by boundary riders in Lightning Ridge area, the Black Opal has become one of the most coveted of all opal varieties and, at the high end of the Market, the most expensive by far, capturing the imagination of jewelry designers and collectors who have fallen in love with it’s unique play-of-color.
The book ‘BLACK OPAL – Only From Australia’ is a compilation of some of the world’s most prestigious brands, designers, artists and jewelry makers, all coming together to showcase their most stunning creations – incredible, one-of-a kind Black Opal jewels, inspired by their most vivid imaginations and created in their own unique way. Furthermore, some of the best designers in the world have been invited to develop new creations especially for the book, which will be shown for the first time as sketches and gouaches.
It took Didier Brodbeck and Icaro over two years to bring the concept of this book together. Literally hundreds of e-mails and many hours have resulted in almost 160 pages of incredible and colorful jewels – the first Black Opal compilation of its’ kind and exceptional in that many of the participating designers and brands are seldom seen page-on-page, alongside one another.
From Dior and Louis Vuitton to Chopard, Cartier, Van Cleef and Arpels, Faberge and Tiffany & Co., the Black Opal has captured everybody’s attention and inspired designers the world over. The pages of this book showcase many of these, and also include designers such as Lorenz Bäumer and Wallace Chan. ‘BLACK OPAL – Only From Australia’ showcases hundreds of beautiful pieces of jewelry – each page delights with another jewel!
‘BLACK OPAL – Only From Australia’ details the gem mining process at Lightning Ridge, Australia, and the path traveled by the gemstone to reach the hands of the greatest jewelers of the most prestigious luxury maisons in history. In addition, we approach the gemological aspects of this precious gem and answer the twenty most asked questions.
Hardcover: 160 pages
Publisher: Dazzling Books (Paris)
Distributor: Watchprint (Lausanne)
Language: English
Launch: June 2019
Available at specialized bookstores such as Galigliani (Paris), Barnes & Nobles, Amazon.com and many others.
The book, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, written by Ernest Hemingway and published in 1936, made the snow-covered peak a household name. But the book barely scratched the surface of the famous mountain and the secrets that lay beneath.
The story of tanzanite and its discovery is as lovely as the famous mountain itself. As the Maasai people tell it, lightning struck a tree in Northern Tanzania many moons ago. Fire spread through the Savannah, burning everything in its path. Rocks were heated by the intense flames, and soon glowed white and then became an amazing purplish-blue color.
In 1967, a Tanzanian named Jumanne Mhero Ngoma found some of these blue stones as he walked in the Merelani Hills of the Manyara Region, near the city of Arusha and Mount Kilimanjaro. Several decades later, this remarkable stone would feature in the creations of some of the world’s most famous jewelry brands and designers.
Written by Didier Brodbeck and Hayley Henning, the book, Tanzanite − Born from Lightning, details the blue stone’s journey from the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro to the jewelers’ window. Over a number of chapters, the book explains the origin of the blue mineral, its discovery and early days, including how it received its name, and the manner in which it has transformed this area in East Africa—the only place in the world where tanzanite is found. The book also details the pivotal role played by the legendary Campbell Bridges in bringing this beautiful gem to the world.
When I first saw the book at its launch in Hong Kong a few months ago, I was very impressed by its detailed discussion and description of the blue gem. It also bought back memories of my previous visits to Arusha and the tanzanite mines, with the very majestic Mount Kilimanjaro towering in the background. What is also important is that the gem is unique to this area, and supplies will not last indefinitely.
Perhaps most impressive in this coffee table book is the number and variety of detailed photographs of some of the exquisite jewels that have been inspired by tanzanite.
Produced by a wide range of creators, from global luxury brands to small artisanal designers, more than 100 images capture the beauty and uniqueness of the purplish-blue gemstone. For anyone who loves tanzanite or books on beautiful jewelry, you will be happy to have Tanzanite − Born from Lightning on your bookshelf.
TANZANITE – BORN FROM LIGHTNING
Authors: Didier Brodbeck and Hayley Henning
Art Direction: Icaro Carlos
Hardcover: 196 pages
Publisher: Watchprint.Com Sarl
Language: English or Chinese Versions
ISBN-13: 978-2940506118
Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
In China, the lotus is o en associated with men of noble character, whose integrity conquers evil. In chinese litterature and art, there are a number of poems and songs that praise this ower. From Egypt to India, many cultures regard the lotus as a secret symbol. It is one of the four auspicious owers and nine symbol of Buddhism. All of the saints in Bouddhist scriptures are seated on the ower, symbolizing their inner peace. In Buddhism, ther is a proverb about the lotus, ” when the ower blossoms, the Buddha rises ” .
While other trends in China have come and gone, jade has remained at the heart of desires and Chinese cherish, admire and wear jade. White jade, otherwise known as chinese jade is primarily from Hetian in the mountains of Xingiang. It embodies the spirit of the mountains and oceans that nuture its unique beauty. Adored by the Chinese, it is a national treasure.
As China’s o cial gemstone, white jade has always held a powerful, cultural status. In ancient China, only the emperor had the right to wear precious white jade, which explains the considerable number of Imperial seals that are fashioned from it.
To dive into the universe of the chosen subject and gather all available material, including scanning old material never before published. Organising the texts, talking to professionals in the market... opening yourself up to explore a new world.
To build a narrative, organising all this material into chapters, combining the images with texts in a coherent and didactic way, to transfer the knowledge in a precise manner. The book should be beautiful! The images must be in a resolution that pleases the reader and highlight the details.
Book in hand, we must promote it. Talk to journalists, organise lectures and presentations and, of course, promote a nice release event inviting the world's press to get to know this work and give it exposure.
Dazzling Books is pleased to announce that production of its latest book entirely dedicated to Paraiba Tourmaline has begun. Curated by the world’s leading jewelry expert, Katerina Perez, the book will be around 160 pages and is scheduled for release in 2024.
Icaro Carlos, GIA Graduate Gemologist and Accredited Jewelry Professional. Graduated also in Jewelry Design at the Istituto Europeu di Design and Creative Academy in Milano, and at the Ècole du Louvre, in Paris.
@2020 Ícaro Rocks – Todos os direitos reservados.
