Chanel's latest high jewelry collection, 'Signes & Symboles', is a vibrant celebration of the house's rich history and iconic symbols. This collection is a testament to the brand's enduring legacy and its ability to reinvent itself while staying true to its core values. The collection's unveiling at La Pausa, Coco Chanel's hillside villa, was a carefully curated event that showcased the brand's attention to detail and its commitment to creating an immersive experience for its guests.
One of the most striking aspects of the collection is its use of color. With over 11,500 stones and a couple of thousand extra for pavé-ing, the in-house gemology team spent around three years selecting and harmonizing the stones to create a symphony of colors. This push into color and a wider array of stones comes as high jewelry players are zeroing in on 'new precious' options. The collection features a bumper crop of 41 millionaire pieces, with a handful breaching the mid-seven-figure barrier, among them the jewels with important sapphires, emeralds, and rubies.
The collection is divided into four chapters, each inspired by the traditional quartet of diamond, ruby, sapphire, and emerald, which Gabrielle Chanel was particularly fond of. The entrance features 'Imprimé Lion', a statuesque plastron necklace with stars, stylized camellias, and radiant sunrays, topped with a sculptural lion head and a 20.66-carat unheated Sri Lankan sapphire in an octagonal cut. In the living room, a two-strand necklace is adorned with camellia motifs that glow golden in the evening light, while upstairs, in Chanel's mirrored bathroom, a foursome of 'Talisman Gabrielle' rings alludes to the couturier's taste for the mystical and the symbolic.
The collection's unveiling at La Pausa was a carefully curated event that showcased the brand's attention to detail and its commitment to creating an immersive experience for its guests. The property's symbolic grammar, from the field of irises to the arches recalling the cloister of Aubazine convent-orphanage, added to the collection's thematic depth. The low-key approach to photography, with only scant details shown, was a deliberate stance in a period of frantic information overload.
In my opinion, Chanel's 'Signes & Symboles' collection is a testament to the brand's ability to reinvent itself while staying true to its core values. The collection's use of color and symbolism is a refreshing departure from the brand's past high jewelry outings, and it showcases the brand's commitment to pushing boundaries and creating unexpected surprises. Personally, I think the collection's unveiling at La Pausa was a masterclass in event curation, and it sets a new standard for immersive brand experiences.
