Inside Cartier’s star-studded high jewellery launch in Florence, Italy: Le Voyage Recommencé event welcomed A-list guests from Elle Fanning and Riley Keough to Adrien Brody and Gong Li
Florence was the cradle of Renaissance or “rebirth”, Vigneron says, “when architects, designers, artists and philosophers looked at the past and ancient Rome and from that found ways to realise something absolutely modern”.
Inspiration at Cartier often comes from flora and fauna – iconic elements like Panthère and Tutti Frutti always reappear – but shapes are never too literal and it’s this combination of nature and abstract that makes Cartier high jewellery so intriguing. Is that a wave or just a pattern evoking the ocean?
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A fellow editor admiring the pieces in Florence couldn’t help but mutter, “I wish they would be available in rhinestones or crystals so I could actually buy them.” This is not something that you often hear about high jewellery creations, which are often slightly detached from reality and meant for grand galas or to be hidden in jewellery boxes as collectibles.
“This collection is a great opportunity to delve into the essential themes of the Cartier style,” says Jacqueline Karachi, director of high jewellery creation at Cartier. “To explore them in greater depth, take a fresh look at them, approach them with a contemporary eye to go further.”
Fanning, who is only 25 years old, looked stunning in a simple choker with a white-gold-and-diamond floral centrepiece, demonstrating that high jewellery can look cool and modern, staying clear of the matronly connotations often associated with it. Meanwhile, 57-year-old Li wore an elegant necklace made of sapphires, reflecting the timeless appeal of Cartier creations.
A coronation tiara took the crowning glory, selling for US$1 million
While the Cartier ateliers still make these jewels according to centuries-old techniques in their storied Parisian workshops, technology also plays a role, as evidenced by the Sama necklace, a swirling composition with a sapphire at its centre that required the use of CAD (computer aided design) to conceive a three-dimensional structure and turn the creative concept behind the necklace into reality.
- Stars like Gong Li and Elle Fanning dressed to the nines to welcome Cartier’s latest high jewellery collection, Le Voyage Recommencé unveiled at in Florence, Italy last week
- Cyrille Vigneron, CEO of Cartier, described the new line as ‘classic and audacious’ while Jacqueline Karachi, the house’s director of high jewellery creation, added that it also gives a modern twist