It's not a walk. Much less a stroll. Inspired by Paris, by its architecture and culture, Boucheron's new high jewelry collection explores viewpoints, perspectives and heights. Some pieces rise to breathtaking heights in a reflection of the vast capital, such as this set made in the image of the Grand Palais seen from above. Other pieces have their feet firmly on the ground, as they capture and sublimate a light, shape or adornment. The cobblestones of Place Vendôme, for example, are depicted in a pattern of precious stones, which is spectacular, but everyday at the same time, familiar but disconcerting. Above all, this is 26 Place Vendôme, the heart of the Maison Boucheron, actually inspiring the creation of a gemstone as surreal as it is self-evident, utterly inexplicable yet crystal clear. Just like Paris in fact.
At the end of 2018, after 18 months of work, the fully renovated Boucheron Family House at 26 Place Vendôme opened wide its doors. A few months later, the new High Jewelry collection arrived as if to complete the building, like the last stone, highlighting both the history of the Maison and its desire to innovate.
The collection celebrates the Parisian roots of the Maison Boucheron by offering a new perspective on the city. As in a dream, or a fantasy, the city is transformed, rid of its clichés, idealized by the finer points of High Jewelry. The cobblestones of Place Vendôme become a subtle pattern of stones, while a column is changed into a pearl tassel, skillfully articulated to be both rigid and fluid at once.
This new High Jewelry collection is familiar and dreamlike at the same time. It is recognizable but different, Parisian but universal, with flexibility and femininity shining through its innovation. After two and a half years of research, it even reveals the very first gemstone invented by the Maison Boucheron.
Encompassing history and innovation, reflecting Paris and elsewhere, this new High Jewelry collection is the ultimate confirmation of Boucheron's desire to create freely. So that women can wear the jewelry exactly as they want to.
CHAPTER I - PARIS
Through this collection of High Jewelry, Boucheron, a very Parisian Maison, conveys its own particular view of the city, which combines elements of reality with creative fantasies.
COLONNE D’ACANTHE
Acanthus columns, which can be seen on many Parisian buildings, are, by definition, rigid and cold. Here, on a necklace, an acanthus column has been turned into a pearl tassel that is both feminine and soft. The top of the necklace is adorned with acanthus leaves, often found at the top of the columns, while the end of the pearl tassel has grooves, for brilliant realism.
FEUILLES D’ACANTHE
The Maison's great classic, the question mark necklace, is decorated here with acanthus leaves in a flowing tribute to the architectural beauty of Paris and the beauty of nature.
CHEVAL DE L’OPÉRA
This addition to the Boucheron bestiary is inspired by the sculptures of horses found on the roof of the Opéra Garnier. This perfectly crafted horse is made from almost opaque frosted crystal, while the bracelet is in yellow gold, like the gilding at the Opéra Garnier. The mane is made of baguette diamonds.
VERRIERE
This piece is freely inspired by the dome of the Grand Palais, unexpectedly taken over by vegetation. So, while the bar represents the building seen from above, the top of the tassel in blown glass is just like a real winter garden, housing within it miniature plants in titanium which required unprecedented care and precision to achieve. The body of the tassel is made from emerald beads.
CHAPTER II - PLACE VENDÔME
Frédéric Boucheron was the first among the great contemporary jewelers to open a shop in Place Vendôme. Today, the Maison Boucheron pays tribute to the visionary spirit of its founder. From the windows of number 26 Place Vendôme, Claire Choisne shares her personal view of this unique place, which has become the heart of French jewelry.
PAVÉS DE CRISTAL
After it has rained, when the light reflects off the ground, the cobblestones of Place Vendôme look almost white from the windows of number 26. This necklace plays on that beauty, recreating the varying shades of light using round diamonds, baguette diamonds and frosted crystal pavé stones. The pear motif is detachable and can be worn as a ring.
DUO TAILLE EMERAUDE
A tribute to the emerald cut, to the Maison Boucheron logo, but also - and especially - to the shape of Place Vendôme, these double signature rings sport both a 31 carats yellow beryl, which is worn horizontally across two fingers. In keeping with the Maison's stylistic codes, its shape is emphasized by a border of onyx.
TAILLE EMERAUDE
Also inspired by the shape of Place Vendôme, this ring sublimates the emerald cut, since, hidden within the center stone is another stone, itself hidden in a third stone. These three stones, all different, a yellow beryl, a citrine and a rock crystal, create a subtle play of colors.
FEUILLES DE LAURIER
At the base of the Vendôme column is a frieze covered with bay leaves. It has provided the inspiration for this necklace, where it now has relief and realistic movement. Real bay leaves have been scanned in order to realistically reproduce the natural details, while a technique (kept secret) has been developed to cut the mother-of-pearl and fit the 3D shapes of metal sheets.
CHAPTER III - 26 V
26 V is the Boucheron family house, and the heart of its creative enterprise. It is there, in the studio, under the roofs, that inspirations become reality and take shape. It is there, of course, that the idea came this year to design the very first Boucheron stone.
26 V
The Maison pays tribute to Frédéric Boucheron by giving life to his creative daring, by designing, for the very first time, its own stone. A genuine technical feat, this stone is three-dimensional marquetry, combining onyx, rock crystal and cacholong. It also evokes, by its depth, a staircase that leads to the heart of 26 V. The stone is detachable so you can wear the necklace with just its tassel.
PERSPECTIVE
This cuff bracelet is inspired by the characteristic perspectives of the architecture of Parisian mansions. Worked like diamond moldings on a black wall, it combines Ceylon sapphire, onyx and baguette diamonds.
ARMOIRIES
This piece has provided the Boucheron family with its first coat of arms. Inspired by the moldings of the salon des fiancés in the Hôtel de Nocé, it expresses all the history - and wealth - of the Maison. True to the multi-wear tradition, this piece can be worn as a brooch or as a necklace.
WLADIMIR I & II
Wladimir is the Maison Boucheron's cat, a genuine character in its history. In 1981, he was immortalized in an advertisement. Here he has inspired a pair of cat rings. The first cat has a black coat made of black sapphires and emeralds, while the other has a white coat of diamond paving and green tourmalines. It is largely the skillful volume and shape achieved in these two pieces that gives them their beauty.
NURI
Could the winter garden of 26 Vendôme house a parrot? The Maison Boucheron fancied it could, so here it is, in full flight, taking shape on a pair of asymmetrical titanium earrings. Titanium is lighter than gold and the jewelers have been able to work on a wide range of colors here.
JACK BOX
Boucheron jewelry is designed to be worn in any way the wearer wishes, without hindrance or constraint. This box containing a set of 26 brooches inspired by the Jack clasp motif will give women all the stylistic choices they could wish for. The box draws on architectural elements of 26 V, such as the herringbone pattern of the parquet floors, imitated here in mother-of-pearl and wood marquetry.
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