Born and raised in the hills of Florence, Ippolita has always been inspired by the richness and simplicity of Italian culture. An artist first and a designer second, she studied sculpture and ceramics at the Istituto D’Arte in Florence.

After working in bronze and stone on large-scale works, Ippolita was inspired to apply her aesthetic to the world of adornment when she launched her eponymous jewelry collection, IPPOLITA, in 1999 in New York with Bergdorf Goodman.