Vanitas Nocturne: Ellipse Cascade Earrings

A contemporary reimagining of Baroque memento mori and the Dutch Golden Age’s obsession with temporal beauty, the Vanitas Nocturne Earrings merges stark geometry with decadent fluidity. The asymmetrical lower drop detaches, transforming the piece from a bold statement earring to a minimalist stud, embodying the wearer’s navigation between public spectacle and private introspection.

Inspired by a 1643 vanitas still-life where a wilting tulip rests beside a skull and a tipped wine glass, these earrings dissect the theatrics of modern “success.” Designer Liora Falke, once a stage actress, sought to encapsulate the performative glamour of red carpets and the quiet unraveling behind closed doors. The teardrop shape mirrors the lacquered nails of socialites clutching champagne flutes, while the diamonds’ irregular spacing mimics the flicker of paparazzi cameras—close enough to dazzle, yet never truly illuminating the whole truth.

The oxidized details, intentionally uneven, evoke the tarnish beneath gilded lives, while the detachable drop serves as a literal and metaphorical unveiling. Worn by night, they are armor; by day, a whisper of defiance.