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In Memoriam: Designer Robin Rotenier | May 21, 2014 (0 comments)
New York, NY—French-born jeweler Robin Rotenier, 51, died Tuesday of apparent suicide at his home in New York. News reports say he jumped from a 10th story window.
A beloved designer with friends from all walks of the jewelry industry, Rotenier was fondly known as the “King of Cufflinks,” whose pieces were sold by the likes of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, but more importantly he is mourned as a man whose thoughtfulness and kindness were unsurpassed.
The jewelry industry reacted with shock and sadness yesterday to the news of his passing. Mitch Horowitz, vice president of sales for the Harmon Group, recalls an industry dinner when he suddenly realized he’d forgotten to bring cufflinks. Rotenier simply gave him a pair and refused to take them back after the event.
“They’re beautiful silver cufflinks and he just gave them to me,” says Horowitz, who now treasures them even more.
On a personal note, I sat on several design competition judging panels with Rotenier over the years. Though I didn’t see him often otherwise, he always had a huge smile and a hug whenever I did fly by at a show. Whenever he was asked to be a design judge, he took that role very seriously, evaluating each piece objectively for its design and craftsmanship, and never allowing ego to cloud his judgment or indulging in even a single unkind word about any piece.
John Green of Lux, Bond & Green commented on Facebook, “A very good person and a tragic loss for our industry.” And Marie Helene Morrow of Reinhold Jewelers simply turned to William Shakespeare. "Now cracks a noble heart. Goodnight sweet prince. And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest," she wrote on her Facebook page.
The late designer’s brother, Remy, also is a renowned jewelry designer. This was his heartbroken tribute on Facebook:
