(MENAFN- The Peninsula) ayeni olusegun |
The Peninsula
Doha: Bespoke gems, jewellery and watches were on display as the Prime Minister, and Minister of Interior H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani inaugurated the 19th edition of the Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition (DJWE) at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre yesterday. The PM toured the pavilions created by Qatar's leading jewellery brands and had a private viewing of some of their latest collections.
The opening was attended by several Bollywood stars, top model Irina Shayk, Qatar rally driver Nasser Al Attiyah, Qatar's Olympic gold medalist Mutaz Barsham and other celebrities.
The exhibition will host over 500 brands, with local and international designers. Visitors can expect many designs and exquisite craftsmanship from the top jewellers, limited edition collections and extraordinary showpieces. Organisers disclosed that the exhibition, which will run until February 25, will host 30,000 visitors.
In a statement, Chairman of Qatar Tourism and Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, H E Akbar Al Baker, commented:“Over the past two decades, we've seen DJWE become the epitome of luxury and design, offering thousands of visitors a truly unforgettable experience. The combination of visitors being able to directly meet and interact with renowned designers and new participants like regional powerhouse Damas will make this year's edition even more successful.”
This year's exhibition includes a section for Qatari designers to showcase their craft. Jewellery makers like Papillon Jewelry, De Trove, Hessa Jewels, Mattar Jewelry, and others were displayed with Arabian-inspired designs.
Top brands like Rolex, Louis Vuitton, Chopard, Cartier, David Yurman, Azza Fahmy (Egyptian designer), Falamank by Tarfa Itani, Valentino and many more also had exquisite designs. Louis Vuitton launched their“Fantasy necklace,” a must-see 2.56-carat Monogram flower-cut diamond for the first time in DJWE.
Valentino also launched unique pieces in partnership with Education Above All via the“Designing With a Purpose” initiative, of which proceeds will go to EAA's Educate a Child campaign.
In a statement about the partnership, and their long-running collaboration with DJWE, which has featured partnerships with Chopard, Richard Mille, and Hermes, EAA's Director of Partnerships, Parintaj Ankleshvria, said,“We appreciate the organisers of DJWE supporting EAA's mission to transform lives through education.
Awareness and money raised from these unique jewellery collaborations will support EAA's commitment to bringing new life chances, real hope and opportunities to improve the lives of poor and marginalised children, youth and women, especially in the developing world, through access to inclusive and equitable quality education.”
Also new to this year's edition is prominent global auctioneers Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo. The renowned auction house unveiled a selection of watches ahead of their Geneva Spring auctions and a tightly curated selection of watches available for immediate purchase.
“Phillips is a 250-year-old auction house, but the watch department was created in 2014, and our first sale was in 2015. We have sales out of Geneva, Hong Kong and New York.
In 2016, we became the world market leader in watch auctions where we sold the very first vintage wristwatch, a Patek Philippe, for over 10 million Swiss Francs,” Alexandre Ghotbi, Director, Head of Watches, Continental Europe and the Middle East.
“The Middle East is a very new market for us; this is our first time here in Qatar. It is a market that we're trying to develop because I think the region is the most important market in the world,” he added.
The exhibition will take place from from 12 to 10pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; Friday from 4pm to 10pm and Saturday from 12 to 10pm.