Three attention-grabbing advertising campaigns that first appeared in the 1980s are about to be viewed again in “Pomellato, Helmut Newton & the ’80s,” an exhibition scheduled Sept. 18 to Oct. 6 in Tokyo.
Thirteen photographs by Mr. Newton, who was known for his provocative and often erotic images, are to be displayed in Omotesando Crossing Park, an event space in the city’s central fashion district. Entrance will be free of charge but by appointment only through the Pomellato website.
“The ’82 series was a cool series,” said Matthias Harder, the director and curator of the Helmut Newton Foundation, which assisted Pomellato, the Italian jewelry company, with the exhibition. “A woman sits with a dog. It’s funny, the jewelry is marginalized. You don’t see it at first glance. She’s cool, waiting for someone. In one picture there was a man on the side but it’s all about the women.”
In the second campaign, he added, “Newton went closer to the figures, and the jewelry is much closer,” while the third set of images has a particular sense of intimacy.
Mr. Harder said the foundation had created exhibition prints about 1.2 meters (4 feet) tall for the show. “The figures appear life-size,” he said, “allowing for the viewer to feel a connection.”
“The photos were considered avant-garde at the time,” said Sabina Belli, the jewelry company’s chief executive, “but looking at them with today’s eyes they still look contemporary.”
Ms. Belli said she had come across the photos in the archives and wanted to share them again.
And why in Japan? “Japan is an important market for us,” she said. “Tokyo is another capital of fashion, and Japanese women see us as a well-kept Milanese secret.”
Although fashion photographers had shot jewelry for the editorial pages of magazines such as Vogue and Elle, “Pomellato was the first jewelry firm to use a fashion photographer for an advertising campaign,” Ms. Belli said, adding that Pino Rabolini, who founded the jewelry company in 1967, came up with the idea.
“In the past, jewelry was treated in a more serious way than fashion, like in a still life approach,” she said. “Our founder decided to use fashion photographers to put Pomellato on strong women in a sensual way. Newton presented a strong, powerful vision of a woman’s body adorned with our jewels.”
The jewelry that appeared in the campaign photos — such as the Intreccio Diamante bracelet and necklace — will be displayed alongside each image.
Other Pomellato pieces will be on view as well. Some, including examples of its signature chain jewelry such as the Gourmette, are being taken from the archives, while other pieces come from its latest collection, including a high jewelry Nudo parure, or set, with rubellites.
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