Van Cleef & Arpels Aims To Bring High Jewelry To Wider Audiences
The company's exhibition at the Saudi National Museum reaffirms its commitment to demystifying the world of high jewelry.
— “Jewelry should be accessible to the vast majority of audiences, not just the privileged collectors,” said Nicolas
Bos, chief executive officer of Van Cleef & Arpels while in Saudi Arabia this past week to celebrate the opening of a major new exhibition, “Time, Nature, Love.”
In partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Van Cleef & Arpels transformed the Saudi National Museum's exhibition halls into a serene desert-tone inspired jewel box.
“Jewelry is not only a commercial category and business activity, it's been a component of art, culture and civilization for as long as humans have been on the planet,” said Bos. “You can look at jewelry from so many different angles: history, art, craftsmanship, the science and minerals and the cultural dimension.”
The 280 pieces in the exhibition include some never-before-seen jewels, as well as loans from local collectors and items previously owned by Princess Faiza and Queen Nazli of Egypt. More than 90 archival documents, sketches and gouaché designs are a part of the exhibit, providing context on the process of creating the jewelry.
Bos said working with museums is critical for exhibitions of this scale.
“Before we promote Van Cleef's specific signature, we need to be part of the overall promotion of jewelry as a category. The connection between jewelry and art and culture was weak for a period. Now there is a larger presence of jewelry in museums than 15 years ago.”
Recruitment of skilled artisans has also been a challenge across the industry. “The fact that the category was not that well understood also made it difficult to find talent to work in the profession,” he added.
During the exhibition, which will run through April 15, the museum will host talks and workshops with key industry leaders from the Van Cleef-supported L'Ecole School of Jewelry Arts. “The educational programming will make for a valuable exchange of views and will enrich
the way jewelry and our creations are perceived,” the CEO said.
Bos said the business in the region is very strong and growing.
“It's a very significant market, like the U.S., Europe and Asia,” he said. Within the Middle East, Saudi Arabia holds huge potential. “We are very happy to already a total of four boutiques here.”
Bos said the market is ripe for more store openings. “The country is very ambitious and retail, trade and tourism are high on the list and those are very important for us.”
Van Cleef's parent company, Richemont, earlier reported a 10 percent increase in sales for the Middle East in the third quarter even as China remained challenged due to the COVID-19-related lockdowns late last year.