Nature is a common theme for designs. Rather than realism, Cartier's designers have abstractly imagined water, flora and fauna as lavish high jewellery under the [Sur]Naturel collection.
Their interpretations challenged artisans to work on materialising the transfigured vision of nature.
Curves and counter-curves of the Sinopé Necklace evoke water as ice or rippling waves. The structure comprises linked diamond-set pieces, while the lapis lazuli edge is a stroke of gem-cutting mastery in shaping the hard stones into tiny curved pieces.
Specific settings were developed to integrate sapphires on the rounded outer edge, with the stones secured from underneath. The five oval-shaped sapphires were collated based on colour, crystallisation and their beautiful "medium cornflower blue" shade.
A pair of shimmering beryls seem to float above a lattice of paved diamonds on the Tillandsia Necklace, named after a plant under the Bromeliaceae family, characterised by rounded, water-filled parts, prickles and often exposed roots.
The rare beryl stones stand out thanks to their weight, elongated oval shape, crystallisation and water-green colour with flashes of yellow.
The subtle tones of the air plant are recreated through the colour of the beryls, pink rutilated quartz and sunny yellow as well as slightly earthy diamonds.
It was a demanding task to achieve the asymmetric design and stylised shape. The two central stones are positioned slightly offset from one another, to create a sense of movement.
Alongside orchid and cactus, the tillandsia has become part of Cartier's signature plant family. The brand's emblematic animals include the panther, whose fur inspired the Hemis Necklace with an organic yet hybrid-like dimension.
Hemis Necklace.
The high-jewellery piece features a cushion-shaped kunzite in an intense pink colour and a hint of purple. Its striking pavilion was a feat in terms of craftsmanship as jewellers had to design a complex structure for aligning surrounding stones.
Selected for their different shades, from blue to purple-grey, opals include slightly translucent stones and some with irregular and iridescent spots. Gem-cutters worked on making each unique stone look like polished pebbles, according to the design.
Alongside the violet and magenta contrast, there is an array of colours across all the stones, from the central kunzite stone to the opals and pink diamonds dotted here and there between paved diamonds set in shagreen.
Panther spots further inspired the hybrid Panthère Tropical Wristwatch, with contrasting colours and materials.
The bracelet features delicate and organic coral, gadrooned to make it even more exquisite. By combining gadrooned coral with yellow gold in a panther motif embellished with aquamarines and tourmalines, the wristwatch is a unique piece that remains anchored in Cartier's stylistic DNA.
Another symbolic creature, the crocodile is interpreted in a dazzling array of stones, including five Zambian emeralds, for the Gharial Necklace. The way the diamonds are set may seem random, but the piece itself has been meticulously crafted to resemble the animal's skin in a striking way.
The necklace features a double pendant consisting of elongated kite-shaped diamonds, whose asymmetrical arrangement brings a certain dynamic quality and tension to the design.
Lastly, the Orpheis Necklace with its stylised design captures scales and accumulating rings of a snake. Overlappng diamonds in a staggered pattern create the snakeskin effect, while onyx-stone triangles evoke the creature's dorsal ridge, providing symmetry, perspective and movement.
Boasting an intense blue-green colour with hints of grey, the central Zambian emerald is uniquely a rectangular cabochon with rounded sides, with this shape recalling the head of the serpent.
Opheis Necklace.
Sinopé Necklace.
Gharial Necklace.
