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| Interior of the nave with decor signed Jouin and Manku. |
The awe-inspiring interiors of Paris' numerous monuments and museums are impossible to hide even from the least observant passerby : the Petit Palais' courtyard in the summertime, the Musee d'Orsay's vast nave, the luminous, garden setting for French sculptures in the Louvre, the tea room in Musee Jacquemart-Andre are just a few. Let's not forget the classical columns and large marble steps of the Nave in Les Arts Decoratifs where visitors will be doubly astounded this season to discover a large selection of dazzling archives from the vaults of Van Cleef and Arpels scintillating in a decor signed by Patrick Jouin and Sanjit Manku.
All these adjectives are a bit superfluous. It goes without saying that a show of such reputable jewels will be spectacular, but Van Cleef et Arpels. L'art de la haute joaillerie, is not just a pretty advertisement for one of Paris' top jewelers.
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| Ludo bracelet, articulated ribbon of hexagons in gold incrusted with rubies, 1937. Copyright, Patrick Gries for Van Cleef and Arpels |
I'll admit that as I walked in to the museum on a cold, Thursday night, gladly turning over my dripping-wet umbrella at the coat-check, I expected to see beautiful jewelery without any great expectations for the intellectual content of the exhibition. Let's go over a little list of Van Cleef's antecedents: the Mystery Set (TM), the Ludo bracelets, the Minaudiere (TM) and the Zipper necklace. These are just a few of the pieces that have made the reputation of the maison. They are all presented in such a great number that it's nearly impossible to take it in, but they are assembled in a manner that gives you an excellent look into numerous aspects of the company's activities.
The exhibition goes through the evolution of the company, describing innovations, trends, and showing off celebrities that wore and inspired various models. The most renowned story presented is certainly the Minaudiere (TM) a purse box with numerous little compartments for the various necessary items ladies' keep in their handbags. Charles Arpels is said to have concocted this creation after remarking that Florence Jay Gould, who was one of his clients, carried around a Lucky Strike box to hold her lipstick, cigarettes, etc.
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| Double flower clip and serpent chain necklace, 1939. Copyright, Patrick Gries for Van Cleef and Arpels. |
A personal favorite is the serpent chain necklace with double flower clip. This necklace can be folded around to create a bracelet or opened up to make a belt. The clip can be worn with or without the chain. It was presented at the World exhibition in New York in 1939. Multifunctional jewelry seems to have been a trend that spanned decades. In the early fifties for example, Van Cleef created a necklace that closes and opens like a zipper and can be transformed into a bracelet.
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| Chrysanthemum clip, 1937. Copyright, Patrick Gries for Van Cleef and Arpels. |
A word must be said on the Mystery Set (TM), Van Cleef's superstar. This setting (that the company has trademarked) is comprised of a series of stones placed side by side like a puzzle. As the stones are not interrupted by the metal setting, only a carpet of solid color is visible. The museum presents the technique in a very clear way (much clearer than my own) and shows a large number of pieces made with this setting. The Chrysanthemum clip of 1937 is one of the most impressive.
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| Colombiad clip from the Extraordinary Voyages collection 2010. Copyright, Patrick Gries for Van Cleef and Arpels. |
Each decade has numerous stories to tell and models to discover, each more interesting than the last. Visitors should be sure to have at least two hours available in order to see it all. Note that there is also a very well-made documentary filmed in the Van Cleef and Arpels workshop that shows the variety of specialists involved in the creation of their jewelry. All written information has been translated into English so that non-French speakers can see and learn too. When I attended on Thursday evening, there were several guides from the museum who gave impromptu commentaries. This gives an excellent atmosphere to the visit.
Enjoy the show!
-CSL
Van Cleef et Arpels. L'art de la haute joaillerie.
September 20, 2012 - February 10, 2013
Les Arts Decoratifs - Nave
107 rue de Rivoli
Paris 75001
+33 1 44 55 57 50
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