Founded in 2014 by Liz Swig, LIZWORKS collaborates with celebrated contemporary artists to create limited-edition pieces that reflect the moment and push the boundary between jewelry and art.

Most recently, LIZWORKS collaborated with American artist Robert Longo to create a collection of jewelry that comments on the state of our union. Items in the collection take the form of a rose and a bullet hole rings, pendants, and earrings, harnessing the enormous power and scale of Longo’s work with immediacy and intimacy. “Destruction and Regeneration; Fragility and Hope; Darkness and Light—they are all contained in these arresting pieces,” says LIZWORKS founder Liz Swig. “But it is entirely up to the beholder to decide which piece stands for what.” Says Longo: “In 2020, I feel more urgency to produce work that questions the way in which we can at once consume beauty and also mobilize to create change in the world.” The collaboration was exclusively unveiled at Sotheby’s East Hampton gallery.

With ANXIOUS MEN, LIZWORKS collaborated with American artist Rashid Johnson to create a collection of jewelry that drew upon his distinctive visual language. Struck by the urgency and raw honesty of Johnson’s ANXIOUS MEN series, Swig embarked on a challenge to contain that power into small objects one could hold in their hand or wear next to their skin, thereby creating gold and titanium cuffs, signet rings, military tag necklaces and pendants. “During the process, we found ourselves in the midst of a global pandemic and unprecedented protest for social justice,” says Swig. “In this context, in this world, the work becomes even more powerful, more profound—braver still in its anxiety and its vulnerability. It dares us to stay present and engaged.”

With CAMEO, LIZWORKS takes on one of the oldest forms of portraiture, dating back to ancient Greece when the profiles of the Gods of Olympus were first carved in agate, and completely reimagines it through the vision of two of the most important contemporary artists working today: Cindy Sherman and Catherine Opie.

Past LIZWORKS projects have included CHARMED, which envisioned the traditional charm bracelet as both a contemporary heirloom and a wearable work of art, bringing seven incredible women artists including Barbara Kruger, Shirin Neshat, Laurie Simmons, Cindy Sherman, Mickalene Thomas, Rachel Feinstein and Wangechi Mutu, into an intimate and powerful dialogue. In 2017, LIZWORKS presented TFO, a revolutionary oatmeal experience in collaboration with Humberto and Fernando Campana, creating two limited edition bowls—one in cast bronze and the other in terracotta. LIZWORKS also produced limited edition eyewear in collaboration with Hiroshi Sugimoto and Vik Muniz.

“To me, the distinction between jewelry and art is immaterial,” says LIZWORKS founder Liz Swig. “As long as the pieces provoke and delight, I know I am doing something right.”

A renowned patron, collector, and a formidable fundraiser, Liz Swig has served in leadership roles on the Boards of Directors of several prestigious cultural institutions, including the Whitney Museum of American Art, The Film Society of Lincoln Center, CreativeTime, and the American Friends of the Israel Museum. She is widely recognized for the range of unforgettable events she has orchestrated on those organizations’ behalf, often with record breaking results. For the past few years, she has channeled her passion her wit, her instinct for making connections and her inimitable ability to get things done into LIZWORKS.