“Apart from museums, I have always been reluctant to exhibit outside of my place in Venice,” admits the Italian master jeweler Attilio Codognato, whose memento mori designs, in his almost 60 years as head of the Casa Codognato, founded in 1866 by his great-grandfather, Simeone, have amassed a cult following spanning European royal families to Elton John and Nicole Kidman. This makes “Coveted: Jewels by Codognato,” the company’s first-ever gallery exhibition at San Francisco’s Serge Sorokko Gallery, an exclusive treat. Even better: For the holidays, each of the nearly 50 pieces is on sale. “Serge and Tatiana Sorokko have been encouraging me for more than two decades,” says Codognato. “Their persistence has paid off.”
Dec. 8-Jan. 7. 55 Geary St., S.F., 415-421- 7770; sorokko.com.