As with every presentation, Van Cleef & Arpels has created a sense of wonder. In January 2021, the brand unveiled some of the pieces that make up its new high jewellery collection: Sous les étoiles, une rêverie céleste. From a set that will include nearly 150 pieces, a hundred or so sets and jewels are revealed. Fairytale constellations, dreamlike milky ways, distant and inaccessible planets, galaxies coloured by the rarest gemstones, diamond nebulae – a rich and incredible array of stars and cosmic motifs are revealed. Collection after collection, the house always knows how to touch the heart of its public.
Clip Fée des astres. White gold, coloured sapphires, spessartite garnets, lapis lazuli, rock crystal, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA-2020
Midnight sky necklace. White gold, sapphires, lapis lazuli, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA – 2020
Nebula clip. White gold, pink gold, an 8.18-carat spessartite troïdia garnet, purple sapphires, onyx, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA-2020
Those who know the company and its collections well will rightly recall the “Les Voyages Extraordinaires” collection, dedicated more particularly to Jules Verne’s novel “From the Earth to the Moon” published in 1895. Already the stars, the planets, the constellations… But in reality, this theme was already anchored in the company’s inspirations. The archives reveal a “star” brooch dating from 1907, but also several advertisements. One of these is from 1944, entitled “Fairy”, showing a little diamond fairy “Wings of Victory by Van Cleef & Arpels” with her magic wand in the Paris night sky. It was a way of saying that the stars were finally coming back as the war was about to end. Later, in the 1960s, man would walk on the moon. Here again, the company offers moon pendants for the year 1969.
Galaxie tourbillon clip. White gold, yellow gold, pink gold, a round blue tourmaline of 9.20 carats, blue and yellow sapphires, black spinels, spessartite garnets, lapis lazuli, onyx, turquoise, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA-2020
Cepheid necklace with detachable clip. White gold, 11 chalcedony cabochons for 159.72 carats, 21 baguette tanzanites for 30.16 carats, purple sapphires, tsavorite garnets, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA-2020
Universe necklace with detachable clip. White gold, one round EVVS2 diamond of 5.45 carats, coloured sapphires, spessartite garnets, onyx, amazonite, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels
This new collection is an opportunity for the brand to demonstrate its talent for acquiring the most beautiful and rare stones. As the houses fight a silent but very real battle: the battle to be the first to buy the stone that will soon adorn a future jewellery set. These wonders of nature, comparable to distant and often inaccessible stars, are unique and it can take many years to find and assemble several identical stones. For example, the “Astral Treasure” necklace required a year of research to match the two majestic sapphires that adorn it: one of 31.17 carats from Sri Lanka and the other of 22.82 carats from Myanmar. I also like the two-coloured tanzanites that adorn the “Cepheid” necklace, which I can’t get enough of!
Ison bracelet. White gold, pink gold, Traditional Mystery Setting ruby, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels
Double galaxies purple sapphire clip. Pink gold, one 7.24-carat oval purple sapphire (Madagascar), pink sapphires, rubies, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA-2020
Equinox clip. White gold, yellow gold, yellow sapphires, spessartite garnets, white mother-of-pearl, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels SA – 2020
Of course, this new set is an opportunity to showcase the expertise and excellence of the professionals in the workshops: jewellers, lapidaries, setters, polishers, but also designers and computer graphics specialists who have worked from start to finish to bring these exceptional and rare jewels to life. When I see the creations, I tell myself that excellence is good, that it is necessary and that it must be what guides young people who decide to enter these professions, which are hard but oh so rewarding!
Halley necklace and ring with interchangeable designs. White gold, yellow gold, one 11.29 carat pear Fancy Vivid Yellow diamond, one 3.26 carat pear DFL diamond, yellow and white diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels
Goddess Mars clip. White gold, jasper, diamonds© Van Cleef & Arpels
Abetti ring. White gold, a green tourmaline troïdia of 13.38 carats, a black opal cabochon of 2.98 carats, diamonds. Photo: Van Cleef & Arpels SA – 2020
Saturn clip. White gold, yellow gold, diamonds. van Cleef & Arpels
See you soon!
