The World Jewelry Center has retained industry veteran Christine Webb to head the development of the museum experience that will be a featured part of WJC’s retail center.

Webb is a graduate of Penn State University, where she earned a B.S. degree in geology and a Gemological Institute of America Graduate Gemologist. She has more than 20 years experience in the gem and jewelry industry, including positions ranging from sales manager to gemologist/appraiser to gemologist/consultant, for firms such as Tiffany & Co., Nova International, and Nordstrom.

For many years, Webb has been a curatorial assistant and contractor with the Smithsonian Institution. She served as project coordinator for the Smithsonian’s popular “Allure of Pearls” exhibit in 2005, and also worked on other Smithsonian projects, such as the Gem Hall renovation and The National Gem Collection book.

 “I am delighted to find someone who has such expertise in this field to direct the development of this important part of the World Jewelry Center,” said WJC managing director Bill Boyajian.

Boyajian said the concept of the WJC’s museum is to provide an independent attraction to help draw the public’s attention to the retail center, and to be an educational tool and a link to the local community, as well as an experience that provides entertainment and excitement for Las Vegas visitors.

The proposed World Jewelry Center, with approximately one million square feet of mixed-use space, is being planned in the new master-planned community of Union Park south of the Las Vegas strip. It will combine corporate offices of domestic and international gem and jewelry companies in a proposed 60-story trade tower. The mixed-use project will also include an adjacent free-standing gallery of retail jewelry stores, a museum, exhibition space, and luxury residential condominiums. It is being designed by Altoon+Porter Architects and developed by Probity International Corp. It is owned and operated by Heritage Nevada-VIII, LLC, a single purpose entity.

JCK