The Golden Age of Scavia

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The Bagatti Valsecchi Museum presented THE GOLDEN AGE OF SCAVIA. A beauty that enchants. An incursion of goldsmith’s art into the permanent itinerary the Museum created in collaboration with Scavia. The exhibition took place from 8 to 12 November 2023. 

One hundred years after the opening of Scavia’s first Milanese store, the exhibition marked a partnership between the Museum and the well-known jewellery house that has enchanted the world with timeless creations for a century.

The centuries-old history of Scavia is an example of high Milanese artistic craftsmanship that has seen four generations of a family dedicated to the creation of jewellery.

This is a story akin to the identity of the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum. This is a neo-Renaissance residence commissioned by the brothers Fausto and Giuseppe in the mid-nineteenth century. It harmoniously preserves two souls, the Renaissance and the Nineteenth century. It also results from a very refined work of high craftsmanship for its furnishings and architectural decorative parts. 

Scavia and the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum are two realities that share the same scenery of beauty and magnificence: the “Quadrilatero della Moda”, the heart of Milan that during the twentieth century became a luxury district, with the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum animating its cultural life.

It was 1911 when Domenico Scavia, a skilled goldsmith, moved from Valenza to Milan with his wife Maria to open a jewellery workshop, still active today, in Corso XXII Marzo. A few years later, in 1923, he opened the first shop on the same street.

After Maria and Domenico’s death, their daughter Sara was flanked by her son Fulvio, who took the family’s destiny into her own hands, making the business prosper and distinguishing herself as one of the few leading women in the Italian goldsmith sector. Today, the fourth generation of Scavia, with Fulvio and his son Alessandro, looks to the future by breaking tradition, distinguishing itself in the art of high jewellery for its profound innovation. 

The exhibition THE GOLDEN AGE OF SCAVIA. A beauty that enchants, therefore, wants to pay homage to this exciting family story: in the rooms of the Museum will be exhibited, in close synergy with the permanent collection, some of the brand’s historic jewels, together with others of recent manufacture – the result of the creative flair of Fulvio Scavia and Alessandro Scavia.

These are unique pieces that make the passion and dedication of their designers immediately recognizable, many of whom have won prestigious international awards. 

Like the magnificent Sandra Dia earrings, designed in 1988 for Elizabeth Taylor and now iconic thanks to their unusual and fascinating shape.

Or, again, the fabulous necklace in blond and black and gold horn, a paradigm of the most classic cuts.

Or the Two Cones ring illuminated by two diamonds, thanks to which Fulvio Maria Scavia won the first Diamond International Award in 1976.

Alongside the jewels, there will be archival photographs that testify to over a hundred years of activity: shots of the goldsmith’s work in the laboratory and historical images of the first shop in Corso XXII Marzo, but also family photos, high fashion shows, social events and meetings with famous international faces.