Read My Pins: the Madeleine Albright Collection October 11, 2010

This exhibition, featuring pins from former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's collection, explores the use of jewelry as a tool of diplomacy and captures her wit and the expressive nature of her pins. During her service as ambassador to the United Nations, and then as secretary of state, Albright came to understand how powerful a symbol an item of jewelry could be, and chose pins to reflect her diplomatic mission, reinforce her negotiating position, or express her pride of country and office. The pins on view span more that a century of jewelry design and range from dime-store pins to designer creations to family heirlooms. She wore these pins at meetings with world leaders and ordinary citizens alike, in settings both formal and informal.