Diamonds may be forever, but they have never looked quite like this. Opening exclusively in Melbourne on 12 June 2026, the NGV’s Melbourne Winter Masterpieces® presentation, Cartier, assembles more than 300 resplendent jewels, tiaras, necklaces, brooches, timepieces and original design drawings - an unprecedented Australian survey of the maison’s artistry and innovation.
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24 February 2026
Direct from London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, the exhibition traces Cartier’s ascent from a family workshop to the first truly international jewellery house, revealing how design excellence, technical bravura and cultural curiosity forged an unmistakable style.
At its heart is the story of three brothers — Louis, Pierre and Jacques Cartier — who, at the turn of the twentieth century, expanded the firm to Paris, London and New York, bringing design and manufacture in-house and refining the ethereal ‘Garland style’. The exhibition traces its origins through the Art Deco decades and beyond, spotlighting Jeanne Toussaint’s visionary tenure as Creative Director (1933–1970), when the panther motif evolved into legend and modern glamour found its feline emblem.
Cartier's reputation broadened thanks to the devotion of royal figures and leading creatives from the worlds of cinema, music and fashion. Pieces owned and worn by Elizabeth Taylor, Rihanna, Princess Margaret, the Duchess of Windsor, Dame Nellie Melba, the Maharaja of Patiala, the Begum Aga Khan III and American heiress Barbara Hutton shimmer with biography as much as brilliance. Taylor’s latticework diamond necklace set with seven Burmese rubies, gifted by Mike Todd, burns with the “red fire” she so famously described. A diamond rose clip worn by Princess Margaret at her sister’s coronation brings ceremony into intimate scale, while Wallis Simpson’s trove — among them the witty Flamingo brooch, an opulent amethyst-and-turquoise Bib necklace, and the 1949 Panther clip set with a 152.35-carat Kashmir cabochon sapphire — reminds us that audacity is a Cartier signature.
A spectacular display of over 20 tiaras is a highlight, linking classical laurel wreaths and celestial halos to modern occasions of state and style. Highlights include the Scroll tiara of 1902, worn by Clementine Churchill at Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation and by Rihanna on the cover of W, alongside the Sun tiara of 1907, featuring a heart-shaped 32-carat fancy intense yellow diamond, and the 1934 diamond-and-platinum Halo tiara, inspired by ancient Egypt.
Material intelligence threads throughout. Jacques Cartier’s sourcing voyages to the Middle East, India and Sri Lanka expanded the house’s gemological palette, while the exhibition’s dedicated materials section lays bare the stones, metals and techniques behind the myth. A rich selection of Tutti Frutti jewels, timepieces that chart Cartier’s watchmaking innovations, and contemporary works featuring Australian opals illustrate the maison’s dual allegiance to heritage and reinvention.
Fittingly, the exhibition design, conceived by the NGV with Rotterdam practices Studio Sabine Marcelis and CLOUD, responds to colour, light and materiality, echoing Cartier’s own language while guiding visitors through a sequence of luminous set pieces.
