Italian jewelry designers are known for their intricate creations, avant-garde concepts and skilled craftsmanship. One Italian brand, Busatti Milano, is a prime example of how the country’s jewelers team innovation with finesse.
“The story of the Busatti House began in Milan in 1947 when Antonio Busatti, a creative visionary and pioneering entrepreneur, started to import rare Japanese pearls,” relates Davide Busatti, owner and third generation of the family brand. “Antonio was also an avid collector of antique chinoiserie and japonaiserie.”
After decades of flourishing business and inspiring encounters, the second generation of the family expanded the house’s portfolio: In 1970, it began to trade in diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds.
The next generation
In 2004, the third generation marked the beginning of a new era for the Busatti brand. Switching from gemstone trading to the design and creation of jeweled masterpieces, the family created the Busatti Milano brand.
Since then, Lalla, Davide, Barbara, Simone, Luca and Andrea Busatti have joined forces under Lalla’s creative direction to embody the highest quality and refinement in Italian jewelry-making. In addition to supplying jewelry to some of the industry’s most prestigious names, Busatti has a flagship store in Milan’s Via della Spiga alongside the best of Italian brands.
“Today, continuity, excellent technical know-how, innovation and creativity have become the pillars of the house that blend together with a strong heritage made of passion
for beauty and the aestheticism of precious stones,” says Davide Busatti.
The city of Milan, internationally identified with design, fashion and architecture, is an inspiration for the family. “Tradition, innovation, design and understated elegance…. These are the values that distinguish Busatti Milano from other Italian fine jewelers,” he adds.
The image of the ideal Busatti woman is clear in Lalla Busatti’s mind. “A growing list of international private clients from Milan, Paris, Dubai, New York, Palm Beach and Miami, among others, have made us [realize] that our client is 35 to 55 years old [and is an] independent, successful woman. She is discreet, aware of what she wants, and [she expresses] herself with a unique style that makes her feel special,” she says.
Flights of fancy
Busatti jewelry is known for combining rare gemstones with unusual materials such as titanium, ceramic, carbon and basalt. It brings together the essence of the Milanese aesthetic with the beauty and femininity of the women who wear the pieces.
One of the house’s iconic symbols is the butterfly, a dreamlike and enchanting creature. “Our butterfly, recognized today by those in the know, is reinterpreted through our collections with innovative materials such as titanium, basalt rock and carbon fiber,” explains Davide Busatti. “Part of our signature collection, the large Basalto Butterfly [necklace] is one of our most recognizable and loved pieces; with its soft and sinuous profile…it represents the audacity of the Belle Époque [era], with essential wings in full pavé, highlighted by [diamond-set flowers].”
The Secret Box necklace is another example of the brand’s high jewelry, but it has a playful quality. Through meticulous manufacturing, its exterior features a large gemstone nestled among diamonds, while a sky full of stars and a retractable telescope hide on the inside.
Dualité, a prêt-a-porter collection, is the latest offering from the Busatti family. It pays tribute to the spiritual heritage of Maori tribal culture by reinterpreting its original symbols. The line is aptly named: Equally beautiful from the front and back, each piece can be worn two ways, reflecting two sides of every woman. The collection is made of gold or titanium with diamonds or blue sapphires.
“Like all collections of Busatti Milano, Dualité is faithful to the house values of tradition, innovation and design, with a unique touch of understated elegance,” says Davide Busatti.
“We have ambitious projects in the coming years, with a number of initiatives aimed at further reinforcing the image of the house as Italian fine jewelers, as well as developing our distribution wholesale and online in key markets like the US, the [United Arab] Emirates and China through local partnerships and agreements,” he continues. “Our presence at [the 2020 Couture show in Las Vegas] is part of a strategy to further develop our prêt-a-porter and core jewelry collections in the country.”
Images: BusattiArticle from the Rapaport Magazine - March 2020. To subscribe click here.