The Art of Movement by Van Cleef and Arples
Is it obvious I have a thing for jewellery? Considering I have shared a piece on Tiffany & Co’s Vision & Virtuosity exhibition and Musée Yves Saint Laurent in Paris (focusing mainly on jewellery). For me jewellery always reflected the absolute epitome of luxury, because it’s beautifully superfluous. If you really wanted to, you could justify a luxury handbag, clothes, shoes, car, house because they all still serve a functional purpose, albeit an extravagant one. But jewellery, like Art and Decor, has no practical function. Its only purpose is to evoke pleasure and delight through and through with no other agenda.
The case of Haute Joaillerie in particular unfolds a world of craftsmanship, design, vision and emotion unlike any other product. Because it’s not functional, it has an air of unattainability making it even more desirable.
Compared to the grand Tiffany & Co exhibition, Van Cleef & Arples' The Art of Movement at The Design Museum was very modest. And yet, I enjoyed it with equal measure, maybe even more so. There are practical reasons why such as, it wasn’t anywhere near as crowded giving me ample time to indulge in each piece. And the entire exhibition showcased its exquisite jewels whereas given the scale of Tiffany’s, jewels were scattered amidst showmanship. Which I’m not criticising, it was immersive and exciting, but I mean to say a quieter and more subtle display can equally have a great impact.
As part of the science of branding, becoming memorable and cutting through the competition requires profiling your brand and embedding it to a particular concept so it becomes ingrained within people. With Cartier you have the panther imagery, Tiffany has owned love and engagements, and Van Cleef’s is movement, though not as well known as the former two.
Incorporating the ideals of motion into something which is relatively static gives each piece an emotional charge, not to mention upholds it as something dynamic and alive which needs to be lived in, as opposed to something still and lifeless which needs to be contained. You can see time and time again Van Cleef reinforces the idea of motion to bring you back into its world as you may drift from installation to installation.
Alongside the idea of motion emerges a global perspective. Like most couture houses, Van Cleef is inspired by different cultures and incorporates these themes into the designs where you can see the influence of the far East.
One of the most renowned pieces is the avant-garde creation of Van Cleef Arple’s the Zip necklace, which you can literally zip up and down and transform the piece from a necklace to a bracelet. Though the technicality and vision for this piece is exceptional, I can't personally say I was enamored by it simply because the idea of a zip doesn’t come across as delicate or luxurious. It is, in fact, its practical element the reason why it entered popular culture, at a time when the ideas of speed and efficiency were being introduced over leisure and rituals. Nonetheless, the attempt to integrate this seemingly functional and simple mechanism, and elevate it into the world of Haute Joaillerie is praiseworthy.
I loved how the exhibition was structured and conceptualised around the interplay of both movement and beauty. Upon entry the installation was a smart deconstruction of the Van Cleef 1937 rose clip, when looking ahead you can see the rose, as you walk along the side you can see the movement of the lines and curves that make up the rose.
And what I loved most of all was the backdrop to the jewels. Bizarre, I know, but this exhibition proved how set design and creative direction play a critical role in evoking emotion and rapture. The backdrops were made of cloth, an age-old technique consisting of pleating on the loom by Les Atelier Lognon. They so beautifully enhanced the displays without overpowering them, providing texture, richness of colour and the play of light as it bounced off from the pleats creating shine and shades.
The exhibition takes you on a Historical and wondrous journey of the brand and its creations, there is much to be taken from it. The most impressionable statement which summarised the whole experience for me: The gems seem to be held together by enchantment.
Art & Aesthetics
