{"id":828044,"date":"2026-03-15T19:38:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T19:38:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/828044\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T19:38:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T19:38:16","slug":"2026-gem-awards-honor-ana-khouri-london-jewelers-jewelry-talent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/828044\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 Gem Awards Honor Ana Khouri, London Jewelers & Jewelry Talent"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe jewelry<\/a> industry turned out in their finery Friday for the 24th iteration of the Gem Awards<\/a>, which wound up celebrating both established and emerging talent.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOver 24 years ago, a group of industry leaders got together and established the Gem Awards<\/a> as a platform to shine the light on a few areas of fine jewelry<\/a>. It\u2019s a joy to carry on this tradition with tonight\u2019s honorees and nominees,\u201d said chair Marion Fasel when kicking off the event\u2019s seated portion at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York. \u201cTonight, we are building on the Gem Awards\u2019 legacy and continuing to expand our community with the inaugural David Yurman Gem Awards grant<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe first honoree of the evening was Ana Khouri, who was introduced by Linda Evangelista<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019ve seen how a silhouette, an image or even a haircut can change how the world sees beauty,\u201d the supermodel said. \u201cHowever, it is very rare to meet an artist who doesn\u2019t just dance within a medium, but also redefines its boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tKhouri first met Evangelista when they attended the 2024 Met Gala together, and Khouri was the first independent female designer to receive the award, Evangelista said.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI have long admired how you embody the transformative nature of design, something that has always been at the heart of my work,\u201d Khouri said, returning the love to her presenter. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Linda<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLinda Evangelista<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMatt Borkowski\/BFA.com<\/p>\n

\n\tKhouri said she aims to \u201ccreate objects that carry this period of art, and yet live intimately with the person who wears them. I have always looked up to the great artists who blurred those boundaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tLooking back on his own early days of his career, David Yurman talked about learning the ropes \u201cstep by step, meeting customers, making new adjustments and seeing what was right,\u201d he said. \u201cThose early years were challenging. I understand how challenging they were, wanting mentorship. I think designers need greater tools and support to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe $50,000 grant plus mentorship from the Yurman team went to Johnny Nelson, who kept his remarks short. \u201cI\u2019m very grateful to receive this mentorship and to receive this grant,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m grateful to have a mentor like David Yurman to trust in my mission.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Gem Award for Media Excellence was presented by previous honoree Sam Broekema, who awarded it to WWD\u2019s senior fashion market editor of accessories Thomas Waller<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tWaller noted that he used to intern for fellow nominee Nicole Chapoteau of Vanity Fair, while the other nominee, Gem & Jewel magazine\u2019s Emili Vesilind, previously worked for WWD. \u201cI\u2019m only as good as my sources, and that\u2019s you guys \u2014\u00a0the retailers, the designers, the executives in this room tonight. Thank you for trusting me with your stories and your revenue figures,\u201d Waller said.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn addition to thanking his team, he saved his best for last. \u201cThe last person I have to thank is my mom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Sam<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tSam Broekema and Thomas Waller<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMatteo Prandoni\/BFA.com<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Gem Award for Retail Innovation went to the London-based Jessica McCormack, which recently opened its first Stateside boutique on Madison Avenue. \u201cAt the heart of the brand is craftsmanship, which could be witnessed firsthand at the jewelers\u2019 workshop,\u201d said a video preceding the announcement.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHer vision continues to challenge us to think about what a jewelry house could be,\u201d said an employee attending and accepting the award in McCormack\u2019s stead. \u201cWarm, personal and always a little unexpected.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSilvia Furmanovich, the Brazil-based jeweler, took home the Gem Award for Jewelry Design. \u201cEvery piece is the result of many cultures in many traditions coming together. Over the years, I have had the privilege of working with extraordinary artists around the world, from masters in the Amazon to embroidery in India,\u201d Furmanovich said. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThey are the keepers of these beautiful traditions. Together, we transform materials, techniques and stories into something new in a world that sometimes feels full of discord. I believe creativity has a quiet but powerful way to bring people together. For me, art has always been a way through, a way to transform differences into dialogue,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe last award of the evening, the Gem Award for Lifetime Achievement, went to Mark and Candy Udell of London Jewelers, which is celebrating its centennial in 2026. <\/p>\n

\n\tThe duo was introduced by Verdura\u2019s James Haag, who recalled meeting the Udells three decades ago. \u201cThey radiated warmth and familiarity and it was like love at first sight,\u201d Haag said. \u201cOver the years, just by being close to them I learned everything from them \u2014\u00a0first and foremost, importantly, always do the right thing. Gain people\u2019s trust, guard that trust with your life, build a sense of community around you, and take the 300 people who work with you along for the ride.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMark Udell, the chief executive officer who joined the business founded by his grandfather in 1973, has grown it to now entail 18 stores.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe never could have imagined this when this journey began. We didn\u2019t build this company thinking about recognition, we built it thinking about people and relationships,\u201d Candy Udell said in her acceptance. \u201cMark and I eat, breathe and live our work every single day, as does the fourth generation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBefore bringing the family\u2019s fourth and fifth generations onstage for a photo op, Mark Udell added, \u201cCandy and I have always felt a deep sense of responsibility as the third generation to carry the London legacy forward. One of the proudest moments of our lives has been welcoming the fourth generation into the business.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThey bring fresh ideas, energy, enthusiasm and innovation while honoring the principles that built London Jewelers,\u201d he said. \u201cWatching them grow into leadership roles with such passion is incredibly meaningful to us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The jewelry industry turned out in their finery Friday for the 24th iteration of the Gem Awards, which…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":828045,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7757],"tags":[23234,14010,748,393,4884,9713,257,20361,16,15],"class_list":["post-828044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-london","tag-accessories","tag-awards","tag-britain","tag-england","tag-great-britain","tag-jewelry","tag-london","tag-parties","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116234886056605702","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=828044"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/828044\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/828045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=828044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=828044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=828044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}