From 7 to 10 May 2026, Geneva’s Palexpo hosts the tenth edition of GemGenève, a landmark event uniting exhibitors from all over the world. Beyond the trading floor with diamond and gemstone dealers, lapidaries, jewellers, and artisans, the show also presents a rich cultural programme.
About Gem Genève
Founded in 2018 by Thomas Faerber and Ronny Totah, GemGenève was conceived not merely as a trade show, but as a community hub and a ‘creativity hub’ dedicated to sharing expertise. As noted by co-founder Thomas Faerber, the event attributes equal importance to the creation of jewellery and the fostering of solidarity among the international community of traders, designers, and enthusiasts.
The tenth edition marks a significant milestone, celebrating a decade of bringing together over 200 merchants, traders, professionals but also connoisseurs. GemGenève is open to a broader audience allows anyone to find out what lies behind a given gemstone, item of jewellery or piece of art, as co-organiser Nadège Totah underlines.
A selection from the 2026 program
The focus of this year is on coloured diamonds. ‘While white diamonds may be the biggest-selling and most highly sought-after stones on the jewellery market, the rise of coloured diamonds season after season suggests they too are becoming increasingly popular.’ – says the organiser.
As Rapaport reports, ‘Recent years have seen high-coloured diamonds command record prices, with the De Beers Blue ($57.5 million, 2022) and Williamson Pink Star ($57.7 million, 2022) leading auction results, often exceeding $20 million per stone, particularly for blue and pink diamonds (2025-2026).’
9 specialised coloured diamond dealers exhibit at GemGenève and they have been picked out by the organisers as ensuring the great quality offerings for potential buyers in this niche market.
‘Shaping Matter, Enhancing Beauty’
The May 2026 edition is defined by a profound commitment to cultural education and the transmission of know-how. The centerpiece of this year’s programme is the eighth temporary exhibition, ‘Shaping Matter, Enhancing Beauty.’ Curated by Mathieu Dekeukelaire with support from the Baur Foundation – Museum of Far Eastern Art and the Geneva Museum of Art and History (MAH), the exhibition explores the dialogue between the artisan’s hand and raw materials.
Featuring over one hundred items, the exhibition showcases the transition of materials—from jade and nephrite to coral and horn—into precious artefacts. The Baur Foundation is currently closed for renovations until late 2026. But as Laure Schwartz-Arenales (Baur Foundation director and general curator) shared with us at the press conference, it has loaned nearly forty objects, including imperial Qing dynasty jades and snuff boxes, allowing visitors to admire pieces from one of Europe’s finest collections of Far Eastern art.
The exhibition also highlights the work of master craftspeople such as lapidary sculptor Hervé Obligi and tortoiseshell restorer Ulli Freyer, who will be present to demonstrate their rare techniques. Hervé Obligi has partnerships with luxury jewellers and watchmakers such as Piaget and Cartier. I came across his exceptional work for the first time in 2018, when I saw his co-creation with Piaget, the Piaget Altiplano malachite marquetry tourbillon.
A new Métiers d’Art Space promotes historic and artisanal knowhow in the ‘Knowledge Village’. Different artisans, from featherwork (with a talk by Nelly Saunier, who is also a frequent collaborator for luxury Houses) to the arts of enamelling and micro-mosaics (featured in the above mentioned exhibition) via the Masterpiece work of Alicia Stanska, GemGenève sets out to enrich visitors’ knowledge about outstanding craftsmanship.
Colombian Emerald
A significant literary highlight accompanies the exhibition: the launch of ‘Colombian Emerald / Esmeralda Colombiana.’ Authored by George Smith, Ronald Ringsrud, Geoffray Riondet, Gérard Panczer, and Guilhem Merolle, this bilingual volume of over 350 pages traces five centuries of history surrounding the world’s most celebrated green gem. The book combines historical narrative, scientific analysis, and field accounts, serving as a landmark reference for collectors and historians alike. A meeting with the authors is scheduled for the event, offering a deeper dive into the myth and reality of the Colombian mines.
Designers’ Village
The Designers’ Village serves as a springboard for emerging talent. This year features eight selected artists, including the debut of Hemera Paris, a brand blending jewellery with luxury leatherwork, or Lithuanian designer Be Liza, who sees jewellery as everyday armour for women. The village also hosts South African artist Athi-Patra Ruga, titled ‘Proposed Model of François Feral Benga,’ a work that interrogates identity and representation through fantasy jewellery.
Source: press release. Photo credits: Courtesy of GemGenève. Loupiosity.com.
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