For fifty years, Chopard’s Happy Diamonds have refused to stand still. What began in 1976 with an unexpected idea, to set diamonds free rather than hold them in place, has become one of the Maison’s most recognisable signatures, a celebration of movement, light and individuality.
To mark the 50th anniversary of Happy Diamonds, Chopard brings this spirit into the present with a new cinematic campaign starring two of its Ambassadors, Bella Hadid and Liu Wen. Different in presence and personality, the two women embody the same sense of freedom at the heart of the collection: one instinctive and electric, the other serene and precise.
At the centre of the campaign is movement. Diamonds drift across the skin like fragments of suspended light, responding to every gesture, breath and shift of the body. Rather than simply adorning the wearer, they appear to become an extension of her, translating emotion into motion and making something invisible suddenly visible.
“For 50 years, the dance of Happy Diamonds have mirrored freedom,” says Caroline Scheufele, Co-President and Artistic Director of Chopard. “Through this campaign, we wanted to celebrate that movement, both intimate and universal, that animates both the diamonds and those who wear them.”
An icon, set in motion.
The story of Happy Diamonds began in 1976, inspired by one of nature’s most ephemeral spectacles: light dancing across the spray of a waterfall in the Black Forest. From that image came the idea of allowing diamonds to move freely within their setting, creating a constant and unpredictable play of light.
The Maison’s philosophy was perfectly captured by Karin Scheufele, who, on seeing the first prototype, observed: “Diamonds are happier when they are free.”
Half a century later, that original intuition remains at the heart of the collection. For its anniversary, Chopard revisits another chapter of the Happy Diamonds story with the new Happy Sport The First timepieces, re-editions of the iconic 1993 model.
The original Happy Sport marked a defining moment in watchmaking: it was the first watch to set diamonds in motion directly on the dial, while pairing steel and diamonds in a new expression of contemporary elegance. The new editions remain faithful to that spirit while introducing updated proportions, available in 26 mm and 33 mm versions in Lucent Steel™ and/or ethical yellow gold.
The anniversary launch also introduces new Happy Diamonds pendants, revisiting a rectangular silhouette first designed by the Maison in 2006. Their more open volumes give the diamonds greater freedom to move, while their designs in ethical yellow, rose or white gold are conceived to be worn with an effortless sense of individuality, beyond traditional notions of gender.
Two women, two expressions of freedom.
For Bella Hadid, an Ambassador of the Maison since 2024, freedom is instinctive. Her movements are spontaneous, expressive and unpredictable, bringing a sensual energy to the diamonds as they move across the body.
Liu Wen, newly appointed as a Chopard Ambassador, offers another interpretation. Her presence is quieter, defined by precision, serenity and an understated strength. Every gesture seems intentional, allowing the diamonds to follow a slower, more contemplative rhythm.
Together, they create a dialogue between two very different expressions of the same idea: that freedom can be loud or subtle, instinctive or considered, but is ultimately found in the ability to move according to one’s own rhythm.
Directed by Manu Cossu, the campaign adopts the visual language of cinema, combining the timeless allure of the movie star with a distinctly contemporary energy. Contemporary dance becomes another essential element through the choreography of Stephen Galloway, who turns the smallest physical details, a glance, a shoulder shifting, a breath, into gestures of expression.
“The Happy Diamonds made me think about movement in a completely different way,” Galloway explains.
Photographer Greg Williams brings an intimate dimension to the imagery, focusing on skin, light and reflections to capture the spontaneous moments in which emotion surfaces. With Bella Hadid and Liu Wen as his subjects, he finds two complementary energies: boldness and expressiveness on one side, elegance and subtlety on the other.
The result is a campaign in which jewellery becomes inseparable from the person wearing it. The diamonds do not simply catch the light; they follow the body, respond to its movement and seem to mirror its emotions.
The enduring appeal of Happy Diamonds lies precisely in this idea of freedom. Fifty years after its creation, the collection continues to speak to a generation drawn to self-expression, movement and the possibility of living in the moment.
What began with a waterfall in the Black Forest became a revolutionary jewellery concept. Today, it remains a reminder that beauty does not necessarily come from perfection or permanence, but from the unexpected, from the moment a diamond moves, catches the light and becomes something entirely different with every gesture.
For its 50th anniversary, Happy Diamonds is therefore less a celebration of looking back than an invitation to keep moving forward.
Because diamonds, after all, are happier when they are free.
