Following the muted high jewellery debuts of 2020, this year has seen the return of bold and daring collections, as well as numerous new investment pieces, as the industry aims for a burgeoning Asian market and increases its digital content drive. The resurgence of the sector has continued to be led by China, with most manufacturers preparing to deliver their collections to Asia this summer. Even though the pieces are a homage to the house’s rebuilt Paris atelier and headquarters, Dior presented its Dior Rose line in Chengdu last month (seen above). Dior Rose is the house’s largest jewelry collection yet, with 116 pieces based around the rose in four themes, with distinctive characteristics such as a jumble of coloured stones and off-center placements punctuating the flowery gems. Cartier and Bulgari held their spectacular debuts in Italy, emphasizing the importance of travel and social gatherings in the world of haute jewelry. The Rose Mantique pink sapphire timepiece in pink and white gold, diamonds, purple garnets, and pink sapphires is from the Dior Rose line. Rose Mantique sapphire necklace with white and yellow gold from the Dior Rose line Dior is a French fashion house. The emotional “sixth sense” that comes with wearing remarkable creations fashioned with stones forged by nature over millions of years is the focus of Cartier’s Sixième Sens par Cartier collection. A notable Phaan ring, for example, combines an 8.20 carat ruby above a 4.01 carat rose-cut diamond, accentuating the attractiveness of jewels, while the Pixelage necklace, with its tones and patterns suggesting the house mascot and topped with 27.34 carats of golden topaz, exudes a warm sensuality. Cartier decamped to Lake Como this year, rather than organizing a large event at a location such as Paris’ Grand Palais, as it has done in previous years. This allowed it to host a series of smaller events. According to Cyrille Vigneron, Cartier president and chief executive, this allowed it to “use the intimacy that is demanded as an advantage.” The Cartier Phaan ring is set with an 8.20 carat ruby. The Cartier Pixelage necklace is inspired by a panther. Cartier is experimenting with this format more and more, as seen by a private concert it staged in Seoul with pianist Sunwook Kim, which was attended by small groups of socially isolated clients. “It was both ‘together’ and ‘intimate,’” adds Vigneron, emphasizing the former for Sixième Sens in particular. “To travel and have a social occasion to wear something extremely gorgeous — that is what great jewelry is all about, and nothing can compare. High-end jewelry allows you to present a more attractive image of yourself… The opportunity to dress up in some way is lovely in and of itself.” In Milan, a select group of clients and VIPs were also given the opportunity to dress up for Bulgari’s Magnifica debut. The 350-piece collection is the jeweller’s most expensive yet, with more than 60 pieces costing more than €1 million. The collection is highlighted by boldly designed necklaces topped with jaw-dropping stones, including a 131.21 carat spinel that is billed as the world’s fourth largest and the largest on the market. Bulgari’s Imperial Spinel Necklace boasts the world’s fourth largest known spinel, Bulgari’s Imperial Spinel Necklace. Amethyst, citrine, pink quartz, blue topaz, and rubellite adorn the Bulgari Prodigious Color necklace. Carat weight: 288,20 carats Bulgari is a prestigious Italian fashion house. Big stones represent the “cornerstone and excellence” of high jewelry, according to Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin, with buyers lured to their investment potential, especially when contrasted to other luxury categories like clothes or accessories. “Clients fully realize that [expensive jewelry] is more likely to appreciate than depreciate,” he explains. “In terms of luxury, these things are wearable and enjoyable. An investment can also be worn around the neck. That sense of fulfillment is unquestionably more tangible than checking your financial amount on your computer.” Bulgari followed up its live event with a five-minute pre-recorded catwalk presentation from Milan’s renowned Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping arcade two weeks later, embracing the “phygital” trend. Bulgari intends to broadcast further films throughout the year, based on the hours of footage captured during the catwalk event. Agostino Osio’s Bulgari catwalk show “One of the most crucial repercussions of the digital revolution is content production — it’s a completely different way of working,” Babin explains. “Rather than a large screen or even paper, we need to think digital first, and for great content on a mobile phone.” The Bravery collection, which honors the 200th anniversary of Louis Vuitton’s birth, also has standout stones of a different style. Louis Vuitton’s life and vision are charted through eight key themes, beginning with a constellation-inspired suite centered on tanzanites, tsavorites, and opals, which represent Vuitton’s birth in the Jura mountains, and ending with Myth, which is dedicated to his arrival in Paris and the formation of his multi-faceted identity (pictured below). The latter is highlighted by a triple-strand necklace that can be worn in 12 different ways and contains important Louis Vuitton codes, including custom-cut diamonds in the style of the fashion house’s house monogram flower and star. The ‘Constellation D’Hercule’ suite pays homage to Louis Vuitton’s birthplace in the Jura highlands. A triple-strand necklace from the ‘Le Mythe’ collection can be worn in 12 different ways. The custom-cut stones, produced exclusively in the house’s Place Vendôme atelier in Paris, are the “holy grail for any jeweller,” according to Francesca Amfitheatrof, Louis Vuitton’s artistic director of watches and jewellery. “From an engineering and cutting standpoint, the cuts are very difficult to achieve,” she explains. “The strain within a diamond causes the diamond to break if the points aren’t perfect.” Louis Vuitton’s artistic director of watches and jewelry, Francesca Amfitheatrof Systermans, Alex Cretey Alicia Vikaner was the face of Louis Vuitton’s Bravery collection debut in Monaco in July. For Louis Vuitton, Getty Images Bravery was supposed to begin in Paris, but due to travel limitations, it was obliged to relocate to Monaco in order to be closer to clients. The majority of the Place Vendôme maisons are still quietly displaying their collections in Paris, with Chopard, Pomellato, and Boucheron dressed celebrities at the Cannes Film Festival this month. The unique Holographique line from Boucheron contains diamonds sprayed with titanium and silver, a holographic coating process used in the aerospace sector that gives the pieces an ethereal, futuristic aspect. According to CEO Hélène Poulit-Duquesne, such designs will appeal to younger clients who are less concerned with investments and are “a lot more creative and knowledgeable on their style and tastes.” “They are willing to play more and, most importantly, regard expensive jewelry as poetry — as a piece of art that tells a story,” she adds. After the summer, Holographique will go to Asia, where it will remain for a longer length of time — a format that began during the epidemic and will continue, according to Poulit-Duquesne. “Covid assisted us in stepping outside of our comfort zone and rethinking how we do things. We put a lot of effort into doing local events with clients and the press, and it pays off.” Extraordinary Lights is a Piaget necklace with an 8.88 carat yellow diamond. Etienne Delacretaz is an Etienne Delacretaz is an Etienne Delacretaz In addition, Piaget is exhibiting its most recent collection in Paris. Extraordinary Lights is a collection that pays homage to celebratory nighttime illuminations and is exemplified by a necklace that can be worn six different ways, with sapphires and yellow diamonds graduating to resemble a starry sky moving into morning. The primary yellow diamond in the necklace has been recut to 8.88 carats, a figure that will appeal to Asian buyers (the number eight is considered auspicious), and its clarity has been upgraded to “internally flawless.” The collection is 30% smaller than prior debuts, with only 48 pieces. According to Cynthia Tabet, Piaget’s worldwide product marketing director, the smaller size mirrors clients’ thoughts. She describes the collections as “smaller but more striking,” with “various capsules launched throughout the year for different stories.” Clients at Chaumet responded to gems with “real meaning,” according to chief executive Jean-Marc Mansvelt. The Torsade collection, which has dynamic gem-set strands that twist around necklaces and rings, continues the architecture concept from last year and commemorates the maison’s remodeled home on Place Vendôme. According to Mansvelt, the collection is being presented in Paris and on social media sites like Weibo in China, which has been particularly crucial for communicating with clients during the pandemic. “We were able to remind our clients that life goes on and that, despite everything, we can still talk about creativity and things that can help people get through difficult times. This is exactly what jewelry is for.”/n
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