Sparkling History
To mark the 90 years since Gabrielle Chanel launched her first diamond designs, a new volume titled “Chanel Haute Joaillerie” is slated for release in December.
As a guideline of those nine decades are the words of the couturier herself, who said she “used [ her] penchant for all that shines to try and reconcile elegance and fashion in a set of jewelry.”
The high jewelry designs are, of course, given pride of place throughout the volume’s 518 illustrations. First come the 1932 “Bijoux de Diamants” pieces designed by Chanel herself, most of which have been taken apart or have been lost to time.
Mirroring this first for the house is its latest offering, the “1932” collection unveiled last May and imagined by the house’s jewelry creation studio director Patrice Leguéreau.
Another highlight is the 55.55 necklace, with its perfect octagonal-shaped diamond weighing exactly 55.55 carats, a design marking the centenary last year of the house’s famed No.5, and which is now part of Chanel’s patrimonial collection.
Over the course of four chapters and 528 pages, the origins, symbols, spirit and allure of the house’s designs are explored through texts and images drawn from the Chanel archives, including preparatory sketches and photographs.
Among the many photographers who have captured this glittering aspect of Chanel are Karl Lagerfeld, Mario Testino, Patrick Demarchelier, Horst
P. Horst, Sarah Moon and Dominique Issermann, with their images giving life to these precious designs throughout the book.
“Chanel Haute Joaillerie” will initially be released by Thames & Hudson in France and the U. K. in December, priced at 150 euros or British pounds. It will be published in China, South Korea and Japan in January, and available in the U. S. in March for $ 200. — LILY TEMPLETON