The creative boom 1906 - 1925 | The Collection Van Cleef & Arpels

1906

The Varuna

1906

The Varuna

THE CREATIVE BOOM – Varuna Closeup

The story of The Varuna

Pendant watch, 1912

Bracelet, 1919

Bracelet, 1925

SET OF CHATELAINES WATCHES

This group of chatelaine watches illustrates the revival, in the 1920s, of this typology inherited from the seventeenth century.

These hybrid items of jewelry are both timepieces and elements of finery, composed of a fastener with a chain suspended from it ending in a case. The dial of the watch is concealed on the back of the case. These watches are distinguished by their use of black and white, combining platinum, diamonds, and onyx—a feature seen in the Maison’s creations since the 1910s—with flat, simplified, geometric ornamentation.

Lapel watch, 1924 Platinum, chalcedony, pearl, enamel, diamonds

Lapel watch, 1922 Platinum, onyx, diamonds

Lambrequin Anneau brooch, 1919

Bracelet, 1921

Purse, 1920

Bracelet, 1921

Paris, 1925

The Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes

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Hat pins, 1925

1925

BRACELET

1925

BRACELET

Created in 1925, perfectly illustrates the aesthetic values advocated by Van Cleef & Arpels at the Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes in Paris.

Illustrating the period’s taste for white diamond jewelry, The band bracelet that had been in vogue since the early 1920s is used here as the support for a platinum and diamond perforated frieze with repetitive motifs that, together with the piece’s use of just one color, provide decorative cohesion.