Fertile is exactly the word that could best describe the creative process deployed by the Chaumet house for many months. The year 2018 has seen some incredible presentations. From the celebration of Imperial Russia in January to the colourful and joyful homage to distant African lands in July without forgetting Japan in June, the high jewellery house proves – once again – how well it knows how to reinvent itself.
Scenography of the Trésors d’Afrique exhibition. Photo: Chaumet
Pink gold ring set with three 3.50-carat “pain de sucre” rubellites, malachite and round tsavorite garnets. Photo : Chaumet
For the first time, a Place Vendôme jewellery house is celebrating sub-Saharan Africa. But it’s not just about where the materials come from, although rubies and remarkable tourmalines from Mozambique are well represented. No, it is first and foremost about the iconography of modern Africa, the vitality of the colours, the energy of the patterns or the mix of shades similar to the formidable wax, those traditional fabrics that are as joyful as they are inimitable! More than that, this collection is also about femininity.
White gold ring set with a 5.61-carat cushion-cut yellow Ceylon sapphire, two 4.57-carat troïdia sapphires and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
Convertible necklace in white and yellow gold, set with a 7.15-carat Muzo Colombian emerald, nine 0.45- to 0.80-carat navette diamonds, onyx, and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo: Chaumet
Here, the studio led by Claire Devé-Rakoff wanted to celebrate a continent that has elevated jewellery into a magical and protective object. Few places in the world, with a few magnificent Asian exceptions, have been able to give jewellery such importance and sophistication. In Africa, the jewel has an initiatory significance of the highest importance, the colours, the shapes, the materials tell the life of the person who puts it on his or her body. Among my favourites, the reinterpretation of the Dinka (South Sudan), Massai or Nyangatom (Ethiopia) jewels with the Ronde de Pierres set, whose astonishing result is one of the most beautiful successes of this new opus.
Pink gold bracelet set with 6-carat sugar loaf lapis lazuli, carnelian, ebony and round mandarin garnets. Photo : Chaumet
Pink gold and yellow gold brooch set with brilliant-cut champagne diamonds, 2.10-carat navette pink sapphires, brilliant-cut diamonds, onyx, pink opal, white agate, chrysoprase cabochons, lapis lazuli, citrine, turquoise, and rubellites. Photo : Chaumet
Technically, one can feel the finest Parisian hands behind the works presented. Whether in the engraved gold of the “Talismania” chapter, in the sculpted stones (like the pink opal elephant) of the “Espiègleries” set or the regularity of the “Cascades Royales” set, the talents of the computer graphics designers, jewellers, lapidaries, gem setters and polishers have been called upon to transcribe the designs and give them their real volumes, thus making them unforgettable!
Necklace in white and yellow gold, set with nine ruby cabochons for approximately 44 carats, ruby pearls, round yellow sapphires, lacquer and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo: Chaumet
Finally, we must mention Evans Mbugua. A Kenyan artist, he celebrates the cultural richness of Africa through his paintings. His encounter with Chaumet has led to the creation of several brooches that will appeal to collectors and lovers of 12 Place Vendôme. Animal pieces with a sense of humour. In short, a daring and refreshing collection. Bravo !
Yellow gold bracelet set with a 7-carat blue “sugarloaf” chalcedony, ebony, zoïsite and round pink sapphires. Photo : Chaumet
White gold and yellow gold brooch set with a 0.80 carat DVVS2 brilliant-cut diamond, round sapphires, and round yellow and pink sapphires. Photo : Chaumet
Transformable brooch in yellow gold, set with lapis lazuli, round sapphires, and red spinels. Photo : Chaumet
White gold and yellow gold ring, set with a 4.24-carat East African “sugarloaf” ruby, round yellow sapphires, and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
Creative Complication jumping-hour watch in white gold set with brilliant-cut diamonds. Dial decorated with giraffes and baobabs on a starry night background, hand-engraved and decorated with miniature paintings. Hour indicated by a yellow sapphire star, minutes indicated by a white gold bird wing. Photo: Chaumet
White gold and yellow gold earrings set with two 1.98 and 1.86 carat Colombian cushion-cut emeralds, onyx, and navette diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
White and yellow gold bracelet set with two oval Ceylon yellow sapphires of 10.42 and 9.58 carats, round yellow sapphires, lacquer, and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
White gold and yellow gold brooch set with Grand Feu enamel, wood, rock crystal, onyx, and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
Yellow gold bracelet, set with three 24-carat mandarin garnets, lapis lazuli, and round yellow sapphires. Photo : Chaumet
White gold brooch, set with two round sapphires, pink opal, pear tanzanites, and round “mint” tourmalines. Photo : Chaumet
White gold necklace, set with a 10.14 carat Ceylon cushion-cut blue sapphire, mandarin garnet beads, sapphire beads, red spinel beads, emerald beads, round black spinels, and brilliant-cut diamonds. Photo : Chaumet
See you soon!
