THE POWER OF THE PANTHER
CARTIER’S PANTHÈRE DE CARTIER COLLECTION EMBRACES THE POWER OF THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE
There is a distinctly feminine power to the panther: slinky and lithe, fine but no less dangerous. Dressed in robes of inky black velvet or dappled gold, it stalks its domain in the dying light of the evening. A creature of the shadows, it remains unnoticed until the last minute, when it’s already too late.
The Maison’s first panther motif appeared on a wristwatch in 1914 as an abstract design that was inspired by its iconic spotted coat. But it wasn’t until the era of Jeanne Toussaint, and the women “distinguished by their character, daring and freedom,” Arnaud Carrez, Cartier International Head of International Marketing and Communication, whom she outfitted, that the panther became a truly iconic symbol.
Jeanne Toussaint, a birdlike beauty with a penchant for the fabulous and exotic, captured the attention of Paris upon her arrival. Her magnetic aura and the feline fur coats she was fond of draping herself in earned her the nickname “La Panthère.” Her creativity and eye for style gained her the regard of Louis Cartier, a muse and collaborator. In 1933 Toussaint became Creative Director of Jewelry at Cartier, ushering in an era of recognizability and collectability with a feline mascot that continues to inspire new trends. The challenge of capturing the graceful movement that characterizes the panther has been streamlined by masters of the jewelry craft over the past century, resulting in a new collection that serves to enhance a woman’s innate power. Speckled cats leap across the wearer’s wrist, completely fluid as if in mid-hunt. Spots of onyx dot the crystalline fur, drawing the eyes like black holes. The panther’s arresting stare is translated into glinting emeralds.
As timeless as the image of the panther is a woman’s appetite for freedom. The Cartier panther represents a century of proudly embracing power and femininity as mutually inclusive. She can take on anything and let the power of the panther imbue her with the hypnotic fluidity and strength that define both the feline and the feminine. Cartier’s Panthere de Cartier collection reminisces the original ‘La Panthère,’ and “the image of assertive femininity” that she embodied, says Pierre Rainero, Cartier International Director of Image, Style and Heritage; according to Arnaud Carrez, Cartier International Head of International Marketing and Commun-ication, the campaign “pays homage to strong personalities and confident styles.” Rainero applauds Toussaint’s memorable ability to notice the “symbolic potential and power of attraction” of the panther, creating a symbol that is equally empowering and iconic.
“FOR OVER 100 YEARS, THE WOMEN WHO WEAR PANTHÈRE DE CARTIER CREATIONS HAVE BEEN DISTINGUISHED BY THEIR CHARACTER, DARING AND FREEDOM. THEY INCLUDE THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR, DAISY FELLOWES, MARÍA FÉLIX AND MONICA BELLUCCI. WE DECIDED TO PAY HOMAGE TO THE STRONG PERSONALITIES AND CONFIDENT STYLES OF THESE WOMEN WITH THE LATEST PANTHÈRE DE CARTIER CAMPAIGN. THE PANTHÈRE DE CARTIER COMMUNITY CONTINUES TO GROW AS ACTORS AND ACTRESSES JOIN THIS NEW ADVENTURE: ANNABELLE WALLIS, MARIACARLA BOSCONO, ELLA BALINSKA, KAREN MOK AND YASMINE SABRI.”
– ARNAUD CARREZ, HEAD OF INTERNATIONAL MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION, CARTIER INTERNATIONAL”