Getting closer to the world of gemstones with L’École School of Jewelry Arts

From November 2025, L’École, School of Jewelry Arts, has launched an extensive program dedicated to the world of gemstones, with initiatives taking place across all its campuses, from Paris to Dubai, and from Shanghai to Hong Kong. Exhibitions, lectures, courses, workshops for children, publications, and podcasts highlight the many facets of the mineral world. Gemology, cultural history, gem-cutting techniques, and artistic creations inspired by gemstones are thus made accessible to a diverse audience, whether passionate or simply curious. Among the new courses is one dedicated to the “Legend of the Lesotho” – an exceptional 910-carat rough diamond – tracing the stages of its journey: its geological formation, extraction in Lesotho, the intricate cutting process in Antwerp, and finally its majestic appearance in Van Cleef & Arpels’ Haute Joaillerie collection, “Legend of Diamonds,” in 2022. At L’École in Shanghai, the exhibition Journey with Minerals will open on 25 November. In collaboration with the Mineralogy Museum of the École des Mines (Mines Paris-PSL), it presents an exceptional selection of minerals, particularly jadeite and malachite, which hold a central place in Chinese culture. Visitors are guided through a five-part exploration covering materials, jewelry, technology, art, and space, with the final section dedicated to the famous Esquel meteorite, a pallasite discovered in Argentina in 1951. “With our international expansion, we are developing a greater number of projects that allow us to reach a much wider audience,” explained Lise Macdonald, President of the school. “Having campuses in Paris, Hong Kong, Dubai, and Shanghai enables us to forge partnerships with universities, museums, libraries, research centers, gemologists, art historians, and artisans across these regions. This creates a virtuous circle: lectures, courses, exhibitions, and publications intertwine, forming a network that fosters knowledge and education. This year, this dynamic culminates in an international program dedicated to gemstones.”

Antonella Reina, Editor VO+