LE VOYAGE RECOMMENCÉ

As their quest for beauty is boundless and their open-mindedness limitless, Cartier craftsmen and designers approach creation with a perpetual momentum. What guides them? For each new collection, their expert knowledge, forged by curiosity, puts them at the forefront of a new beginning, an infinitely renewed impetus that allows them to journey into the heart of Cartier style as if for the very first time. A journey through which the Maison’s fundamentals are approached from a new, unexpected angle. A productive exploration of the Maison’s savoir-faire and creative practices experienced through the light of a new prism.

Designing precious works of architecture, expanding the possibilities of lines and the abstract, reinventing the palette of chromatic harmonies; celebrating life and the world’s horizons: the Maison’s stylistic domains are approached with the same freedom—and taken even further. Cartier’s High Jewellery collection, Le Voyage Recommencé is being launched with more than 90 never-before-seen pieces, the first stop on an inspirational journey.

QUOTE FROM JACQUELINE KARACHI, DIRECTOR OF HIGH JEWELLERY CREATION AT CARTIER

“This collection is a great opportunity to delve into the essential themes of the Cartier style. To explore them in greater depth, take a fresh look at them, nurtured by the spirit of the time. Approaching them with a contemporary eye to go further. A journey back to the heart of Cartier creation, an uninterrupted story being told over time.”

LIGHT MATTERS

Everything at Cartier revolves around the purity of lines, the balance of shapes and volumes, the play of proportions and the final harmony of the entire piece. A strong vision that presides when structures of light are born.

SAMA NECKLACE

Animating the inanimate, freeing yourself from everything static: this is the feat achieved by this creation. A composition boasting a strong visual impact that unfolds around a 19.27-carat Ceylon sapphire and produces a striking sensation of motion. Inspired by the dresses of the whirling dervishes, this necklace forms a swirling series of curves and counter-curves. The voluminous design is punctuated by arabesques on which the light dances.

For the Sama necklace, Computer Aided Design (CAD) was used for its extreme precision, required to conceive a three-dimensional structure of one piece to transcribe the creative concept behind the necklace. Thickness, tilt and precise proportions: every swirl is fitted to the nearest millimetre. To ensure that these precious swirls sit as close to the skin as possible, the craftsmen have integrated tiny invisible articulations to the central motif.

ONDULE RING

At Cartier, it all starts with the stones, they bring out the emotion and the intuition of the sublime. Here, a 0.92-carat grey-violet diamond forms the centrepiece of this ring. An exceptional gem due to the rarity of its purple colour and its weight, which Cartier has integrated into the heart of a miniature structure, like a vortex of light, punctuated by relief and volume. Half-moon diamonds release their radiance around the central stone, transforming its shape and brilliance through a mysterious halo.

PRECIOUS GEOMETRY

Geometry and contrast are two elements that make up the Cartier style. On the one hand, they are based on form and pattern, developed around symmetry or asymmetry, and on the other, the strength of contrasts.

CLAUSTRA NECKLACE

For Cartier, gemstones with character are the raison d’être of every unique creation. The Claustra necklace showcases a set of shield diamonds, including a remarkable 4.02-carat specimen, at the centre of a complex structure made up of broken lines. The effects of perspective and interplays of relief are multiplied throughout, whilst light vibrates and circulates. Onyx alternates with openwork and diamonds in a constantly reinvented contrast that is emblematic of the Maison.

In the great Cartier tradition of transformable pieces, this necklace can be separated in two. This was an ambitious technical challenge. It involved creating an illusion of unity while at the same time making it possible to split the set into two. Jewellers worked to ensure that the lines between both parts hold and fit together when worn. Combined, they are seamlessly assembled in a layered structure with recessed and raised motifs to offer a coherent, formidable aesthetic. Achieving this feat brought an increased challenge for the Cartier master jewellers to accomplish.

Black and white: an iconic combination that Cartier introduced into its repertoire at the beginning of the 20th century, before the period that became known as Art Deco. Whether in onyx, enamel or lacquer, the Maison understood the power of black and used it to accentuate the geometry in its designs. Today, this essential element of Cartier’s style adds rhythm and movement in a modern manner.

REAL LIFE

There is nothing romantic or sweet when it comes to Cartier’s representation of nature, a creative tension that ranges from hyper-realism to stylisation and even abstraction.

PANTHÈRE GIVRÉE NECKLACE

With the Panthère Givrée necklace, stylisation and figuration interact with one another. First, there is the feline’s head, realistic from the tip of its nose to its almond-shaped emerald eyes and pointed ears. Then there is its coat, which is pixelated into a cloud of geometric shapes and spotted with onyx. A masterpiece, the panther appears to watch over a set of three aquamarines totalling 20.33 carats with a powerful chromatic intensity. Fine touches of lapis lazuli punctuate the composition and play on the contrast.

The panther, Cartier’s feline. In 1914, Louis Cartier borrowed the animal’s coat to decorate a platinum, diamond and onyx watch. The spotted motif caused a sensation, and the panther made its debut in the jewellery world. Jeanne Toussaint, who was appointed Creative Director in 1933, rendered it iconic. From Daisy Fellowes and María Félix to Vanessa Kirby today, there is a long list of people who see the Cartier panther as a sensual, independent and liberated alter ego.