Diplomat tells the stories behind “Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection”
Pioneering diplomat Madeleine Albright delighted hundreds of museum visitors throughout the weekend of July 13-14 during her visit in honor of the recent opening of Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection.
The weekend began Friday afternoon with a walk-through of the exhibition for members of the local and regional media, at which Secretary Albright stopped at nearly every case within the gallery to share her insights and recollections. Local jeweler Perry’s Fine, Antique and Estate Jewelry, which provided support for the exhibition, presented Secretary Albright with a spectacular 18-karat gold pin encrusted with 2.75 carats of diamonds, shaped in the crown inspired by Queen Charlotte and the city’s logo. The base of the crown was hand-engraved with “Albright” and set between an olive branch and a bundle of thirteen arrows.
Later that evening, Albright attended a members-only VIP reception at which many of the more than 300 attendees were treated to one-on-one conversations with Secretary Albright. She then thrilled the crowd with an impromptu question-and-answer session, sharing her insights into global diplomacy.
Saturday morning, Albright returned to the museum for an educational program featuring Youth Opportunity University, Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, Johnson C. Smith University, Queens University, international students, and community leaders. After that, a sellout crowd packed into the auditorium for “A Conversation with Madeleine Albright,” and dozens more attendees filled satellite seating in the atrium. She then signed hundreds of copies of the book “Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat’s Jewel Box” and her recently-published “Prague Winter” (both on sale in the Mint Museum Shops).
Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection will remain on view through September 23 at Mint Museum Uptown. It is brought to The Mint Museum through the support of Perry’s Fine, Antique and Estate Jewelry. Exhibition organized by the Museum of Arts and Design. Generous support for this exhibition was provided by Bren Simon and for the exhibition catalogue by St. John Knits.
About Perry’s Fine, Antique and Estate Jewelry
Perry’s Fine, Antique and Estate Jewelry has been in business for over thirty-four years and has been established as one of the nation’s finest antique and estate jewelers. Ernest Perry, the company’s owner and president, has more than thirty-five years experience and expertise in fine, antique and estate jewelry. Perry’s consigns, buys, sells, and trades vintage, antique and estate jewelry, gold, coins, diamonds, silver, platinum, and much more. www.perrysjewelry.com
(Photo of Madeleine Albright with Dr. Kathleen V. Jameson, President & CEO of the Mint, by Wendy McCarty, Aphrodite Photography Inc.)