The latest high jewellery collection by Hermès interprets shadows and their effect on light, to glimmering effect.
The interplay between light and dark in creating the gleam and sparkle of gems is studied in incredible detail with the latest haute joaillerie collection from Hermès. The maison’s creative director Pierre Hardy was always fascinated by how the high contrast of shadows helped amplify a piece of jewellery’s many sparkling facets.
“Shadow is the light’s treasure,” says Hardy. “We always talk about light and sparkle in jewellery, so I wanted to take the opposite approach. In the performing arts, I’ve always loved the incandescent effect of the spotlights as well as the shadow they cast on the stage floor. I find this distortion of light very appealing.”
Les Jeux de l’ombre is Hardy’s response to his “desire to poeticise the form taken by shadows”. In his seventh high jewellery collection with the maison, this exploration has Hardy taking an unconventional and artistic plunge, casting his creations with a contrasting, soft shadow that serve only to broaden the brilliance of each piece.
On the Lueurs du jour series, the shadow is crafted from jade that is worked by hand for a satin finish and showcased on rings, earrings and necklace. The shadows in the Ombres mobiles series, meanwhile, are shaped from titanium and set into rose gold like a precious metal. An astounding highlight comes in the form of the Miroir d’ombre necklace set in white gold with baguette-cut diamonds and a cushion-cut 3 carat yellow diamond, its shadow formed by blue sapphires in a stunning dégradé. The Chaînes d’ombre necklace is an incredible showcase of white gold with pavé set diamonds, its shadow a painstakingly set dégradé of black spinels and blue sapphires.
Further defining the juxtaposition is the Couleurs du jour necklace, an ingenious creation that plays with a triptych that opens and closes, hiding its gems or revealing their glimmering light.
Rough, uncut stones, too, have their day in the sun. Chosen for their intensity, they are especially present in the Lumières Brutes series of rings and earrings. The ring, for example, showcases a rough brown diamond with a shadow comprising a dégradé of brown to ebony diamonds.
This story first appeared on Prestige Online Singapore.
