Swarovski at centre stage at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards

At this year’s Oscar Night, Swarovski once again had anything but a minor role in Hollywood’s most-publicized awards ceremony: the moment that hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin took the stage, they stood beneath the shimmer of a curtain by the American designer David Rockwell made of 100,000 STRASS® Swarovski® Crystals.

No less than 6,000 Crystal Strands, each a meter long, hung over the arch that formed the frame of the stage design. As an addition to the "Swarovski Crystal Curtain" that David Rockwell designed for last year’s ceremony, he added numerous crystal curtains alongside the wings of the stage. During the show, a giant crystal swing that glittered with some 3,100 STRASS® Swarovski® Crystals and from which eight smaller rings dangled also became part of the set.

From the very beginning of the ceremony, Swarovski provided highlights: each actress nominated for an Oscar – among them Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren, Maggie Gyllenhall, Penélope Cruz and Sandra Bullock – received a clutch purse studded with 700 CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements crystals in which her name and the limited-edition number had been engraved. A version of this sought-after black, white and silver "Star Collector Bag" will be available in Swarovski boutiques around the world from September 2010.

Author: Rainer Hawlik
Photographs by Gary Hershorn / Reuters