Paloma Picasso Is Topless (Again) for Tiffany Xmas Catalogue

(MoneyWatch)  Paloma Picasso, a house jewelry designer at Tiffany & Co. and daughter of pioneering cubist Pablo Picasso, appears topless in Tiffany & Co.'s new catalogue of her work for the holiday season. (See picture.)

The photograph is part of a montage of pictures of Paloma's life, including one where she appears as a young girl drawing a picture with crayons as a tanned, bald man -- presumably Picasso himself -- toils at a workbench in the background.

In the topless photo, Paloma is shown wearing a chunky necklace as she grins on a rooftop with a city dome in the background. Her hands, wearing three or four rings, clutch her breasts for modesty. No explanation is given for Paloma's nudity, although there is a quote from Paloma in the catalogue:

Vibrant stones on my fingers and around my neck give me so much joy. Women tell me they feel empowered by my designs.

Convincing women that they will be "empowered" by taking their clothes off has, of course, been a longtime project of many brand managers, first and foremost Hugh Hefner. Usually, brand managers employ models to handle the nudity. It is more unusual for one to appear au naturel herself. Paloma has a thing for getting taking her kit off in front of the camera. In 1973 she posed semi-topless for Helmet Newton, in St. Tropez, France.

The catalogue is unlikely to be regarded as risqué because the nudity is relatively modest and targeted at existing Tiffany shoppers who already have the money and -- Tiffany presumes -- the sophistication not to be shocked at the sight of an old pic of a middle-aged jewelry designer with her yah-yahs out.

Nonetheless, Tiffany is doubtless hoping that Paloma's blocky, unsubtle designs will boost seasonal sales. The company has generally faired well financially through Q2 2008, but has yet to report Q3 results. Analysts are downgrading the stock on the general theory that luxury goods suffer in a recession.

Disclosure: The author has spent large sums of money at Tiffany in the past.