I’m standing in front of 2,500 infamous crystals thinking about how depressing a matte life would be. Glimmer, the art of reflecting and refracting light, has been one of the central goal of civilization since the ancient Egyptians lined the pyramids in limestone. Earlier, actually. Shimmeriness has been next to godliness since the Bronze Age. Aptly, it’s in front of Marilyn Monroe’s infamous “Happy Birthday Mister President” skin tone dress adorned with tonal Swarovski crystals that I confront the absolute glory of sparkle.
In a new exhibition open in Los Angeles from October 28 until November 3, Swarovski is celebrating its over 130 history of shine. It begins with a page from Daniel Swarovski’s notebook, drawings of crystals and prisms dating back to 1895. It ends with Harry Styles’ harlequin jumpsuit by Egonlab. Do you think Daniel Swarovski, the Austrian industrialist, could have imagined a pop It Boy in clown couture? Could he have imagined Baz Luhrmann’s Satine? John Galliano’s riff on Elizabethan silhouettes? Katy Perry as a Moschino chandelier? Josephine Baker’s revealing bikini or Cher’s even more revealing naked dress? They’re all part of the temporary exhibition that showcases the breadth of the Swarovski oeuvre.
It’s astounding to see, unified inside one dimply lit space, Margot Robbie’s red carpet dresses, Bella Hadid’s runway looks, and Beyoncé’s vintage Mugler Cowboy Carter ensemble and realize that so many of pop culture’s more impactful and historic garments all share one thing: Swarovski shine.
It was around Dorothy’s Ruby slipper that CEO Alexis Nasard’s closing statement started to make sense. “Isn’t happiness an amalgamation of small moments of joy?” he wondered to an audience of press gathered to take in the sparkle. One tiny Swarovski crystal is the smallest unit of joy— a shiny, shimmery, little reminder to sparkle. It’s a tale as old as time.
Swarovski “Masters of Light — Hollywood” is on view in Los Angeles through November 3, 2025.