Photos by Elinor Carrucci
Soothe Yourself With Photos of RBG’s Iconic Collars
It’s been a rough week — so we’re looking back at a simpler time, when we all oohed and ahhhed over the ornate collars Supreme Court is in Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was known for wearing over her robes. Maybe seeing these images will lead to feeling a twinge of nostalgia, regret, anger, or even dissent. Whatever it is, lean into it.
Below, find some stunning collars photographed by Israeli-American artist Elinor Carucci. These photos and more will be displayed at The Betsy Hotel in Miami during Art Week in December.
A gold and beaded collar, a gift from her 2016 clerks, was worn to hear oral arguments. This pink, blue, and cream beaded collar was a gift from the Women’s Law & Public Policy Fellowship Program and the Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa Fellowship Program at Georgetown University Law Center in 2013, and she wore it in happy times: to two Obama State of the Union addresses, and to officiate her second same sex marriage. 
-Ginsburg wore this double – frill crocheted collar, a reprise of a popular 1930s design, during her final term, and when she died on September 18, 2020, it adorned her as she lay in state in the Capitol. She was the first woman and the first Jewish American to lie in state in the Capitol. 
Justice Ginsburg wore this South American-designed collar to officiate the wedding of Barb Solish and Danny Kazin. 
Justice Ginsburg officiated many weddings–path-breaking same-sex marriages, colleagues, clerks, and admirers. The present collar was a gift to Ginsburg for officiating a 2017 union.
From top left, clockwise:
1 – A gold and beaded collar, a gift from her 2016 clerks, was worn to hear oral arguments.
2 – This pink, blue, and cream beaded collar was a gift from the Women’s Law & Public
Policy Fellowship Program and the Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa Fellowship Program at Georgetown University Law Center in 2013, and she wore it in happy times: to two Obama State of the Union addresses, and to officiate her second same sex marriage.
3 – Ginsburg wore this double – frill crocheted collar, a reprise of a popular 1930s design, during her final term, and when she died on September 18, 2020, it adorned her as she lay in state in the Capitol. She was the first woman and the first Jewish American to lie in state in the Capitol.
4 – Justice Ginsburg wore this South American-designed collar to officiate the wedding of Barb Solish and Danny Kazin.
5 – Justice Ginsburg officiated many weddings–path-breaking same-sex marriages, colleagues, clerks, and admirers. The present collar was a gift to Ginsburg for officiating a 2017 union.
More on the artist, courtesy of the Betsy:
One of the artists being featured at the Betsy Hotel’s Art Week exhibition is Elinor Carucci, an Israeli-American photographer and educator best known for The Collars of RBG (2023), a photography book that highlights the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s lifelong triumph over adversity and fighting gender discrimination. During Miami Art Week, photographs from Carucci’s The Collars of RBG will be displayed in The Betsy’s Carlton Room; the exhibit is free to the public for viewing.
In 2020, Time magazine asked Carucci to document the collars of the Justice, which led to her series and book. Carucci transforms the collars in her photographs into a form of portraiture, meditating on their intimate proximity to the body of one of the most powerful women in American history, which she explores as both a strength and a vulnerability.
“I see this project as being (very) personal,” said Carucci. “Ruth Bader Ginsburg held special significance for Jewish women like me who dreamed of living a life that combined career success with tikkun olam. She represented my identity, values and connection to America. She represents the values I hope to one day hand over to my daughter, [who, like Ginsburg,] is an American Jew, the child of an immigrant.”
