What to Do If You’re in NYC Next Week

Go Camp-ing at the Met, try prix-fixe menus for a good price, see a Victorian-era parure at Sotheby’s and more.

Michelle Graff michelle.graff@nationaljeweler.com

The Met’s 2019 fashion exhibition, “Camp: Notes on Fashion,” runs through Sept. 8 at the museum’s Fifth Avenue location. (Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, BFA.com/Zach Hilty)

New York—Next week, retailers, designers and manufacturers will descend on New York City for the annual late July jewelry run of events, with one notable newcomer.

Jewelers of America (which owns National Jeweler) is holding its first National Convention Sunday and Monday at the InterContinental New York Barclay Hotel.

On Monday evening, the Women’s Jewelry Association will hold its annual gala at Pier 60 at Chelsea Piers and on Tuesday night, the American Gem Society’s Circle of Distinction dinner will take place.

For those who plan to come a little early, stay a little longer, or are bringing friends and family along, here is a list of five things worth checking out in New York City next week.

1. Go Camp at The Met.
Each spring, The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Anna Wintour Costume Center opens a fresh fashion exhibition with a different theme.

This year, it’s “Camp,” which refers to looks that are designed to express humor, irony, parody and theatricality and are just generally over-the-top, just like the jewelry we spotted at the annual Met Gala held to mark the opening of the exhibition.

The Met Fifth Avenue is open from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and stays open until 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Admission for adults who live outside New York state is $25.

For more information on “Camp: Notes on Fashion” and the museum’s other exhibitions, visit MetMuseum.org.

The “Failed Seriousness” portion of the Camp exhibition includes the vintage Thierry Mugler dress (pictured right) that rapper Cardi B wore to the 2019 Grammy Awards. (Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, BFA.com/Zach Hilty)

2. See the ‘Treasures’ at Sotheby’s.
Sotheby’s currently has an exhibition that’s free and open to the public called “Treasures from Chatsworth,” and it includes a seven-piece Victorian parure.

The treasures in “Treasures” are from the Chatsworth House in England, a home that’s been passed down through the same noble family since the 1500s and has been the setting for several movies, including “Pride and Prejudice” and “The Duchess.”

Sotheby’s is located at 1334 York Ave., between 71st and 72nd streets on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

For more information, visit Sothebys.com.

3. Go Antiquing.
Emerald Expositions, the company that organizes Couture, JA New York and the trade-only Las Vegas antique show, has a show in New York this weekend.

The New York Antique Jewelry & Watch Show is open to

Banner will be right here …

both the trade and the public.

It’s taking place at the Metropolitan Pavilion from Friday, July 26 through Monday, July 28. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day except Sunday, when it closes at 6.

Visit the show’s website for more information and tickets.

The diadem in the Victorian parure currently on display at Sotheby’s is enamel and gold with paste diamonds, onyx, carnelian, garnet and lapis lazuli.

4. Eat.
New York City Restaurant Week takes place every winter and summer, and it’s on right now through Aug. 16.

Restaurants that opt-in offer a two-course lunch prix-fixe for $26 and a three-course dinner for $42, which is a deal in New York.

Interested eaters can see which restaurants are participating, view their menus and book tables on NYCGo.com.

5. Walk It Off.
Dreamed up by English designer Thomas Heatherwick, The Vessel is essentially a giant, open-air spiral staircase rising 16 stories.

Visitors can take an elevator or climb the 154 flights to the top, stopping to take pictures (read: snap a selfie) at landings along the way.

The structure’s been compared to a shawarma, a beehive, a pineapple and a garbage can, and it certainly has its share of criticsin New York, as does the Hudson Yards development in which it sits.

But it’s a good workout and chance to bank a few shots for your store’s Instagram, if nothing else. Check it out and decide for yourselves.

Free online tickets are sold out until early August but $10 tickets are available, and free same-day time-specific tickets are given out at The Vessel every morning starting at 9:30.

Michelle Graffis the editor-in-chief at National Jeweler, directing the publication’s coverage both online and in print.