These Dior Homme jewels by Hedi Slimane will soon be auctioned off

What if the rawest essence of the Dior Homme universe nestled in the cold metal of men’s jewelry? From April 11 to 21, 2025, Penelope’s Auction House is organizing an exceptional sale: 150 pieces of jewelry created by Hedi Slimane during his legendary stint at Dior Homme will be offered for auction. A fascinating dive into the roots of a style that has become cult.

Dior Homme, the Slimane years: the advent of transgressive masculinity

When Hedi Slimane took over as artistic director of Dior Homme in 2001, he imposed a new aesthetic: tapered silhouettes, post-punk romanticism and visceral poetry. But beyond the clothes, it’s a whole system of signs that he puts in place – and that includes jewelry.

The creations he imagined between 2001 and 2007 are far from decorative accessories. They are objects of tension, symbols of identity, even manifestos worn directly on the skin. The spring-summer 2002 collection, Boy’s Don’t Cry, sums up this radical approach: a poem by Rimbaud, harnesses embroidered by Atelier Montex, and a world inspired by New York punk icons. The jewels become narrative fragments, elegant scars on adolescent bodies that are too thin, too proud, too lucid.

An unprecedented sale for pieces that have become cult favorites

Called “La Révolution Dior Homme: les bijoux d’Hedi Slimane (2001-2005)”, this sale highlights a little-known but seminal jewelry production. Among the lots announced are:

• Cigarette chains for Autumn-Winter 2003-2004, in black or silver metal, slender and subversive.
• Winter 2002 heraldic pins, between noble art and symbolic misappropriation.
• The “vertebrae” belt of winter 2005-2006, a surgical vision of a corset-jewel.
• Ultra-contemporary nail jewelry from 2004-2005.
• And the articulated rings so dear to Karl Lagerfeld, who wore them like modernist relics.

All these pieces blend musical influences (The Strokes, Joy Division), cinematographicinfluences (Gus Van Sant, Warhol) and queer, underground visual culture. They also testify to a remarkable technical mastery of embroidery, metal and graphic design.

Slimane, jeweler of the masculine soul

More than a designer, Hedi Slimane reveals himself to be a goldsmith of masculine emotions. He sees jewelry as an extension of the body, a marker of attitude and a personal heritage. At a time when men’s jewelry remained marginal, even taboo, Slimane imposes a resolutely contemporary aesthetic, between sublimated pain and rugged elegance.

This auction is more than just a tribute. It reactivates a specific era, when men’s fashion changed its face – and its voice. Above all, it offers a unique opportunity toacquire collector’s items, halfway between art, fashion and memory.

From April 11 to 21, these jewels will be exhibited and sold by Penelope’s Auction. A selection to discover online or on site, for fashion, history and design enthusiasts.

Also read: Damson Idris, between Hollywood glamour and Nigerian heritage, launches Didris