Van Cleef goes on the Grand Tour

A yearning for escape has taken hold of high jewellery’s maisons. Boodles embarked on a European tour, naming its high-jewellery suites after cities; the title of Harry Winston’s Majestic Escapes collection says it all; Louis Vuitton thrust us back billions of years to the start of evolution. Bulgari and Tiffany evoked a more singular sense of place with the beauty of the Mediterranean and the mysteries of the oceans.

And then there was Van Cleef & Arpels, which unveiled its own travel-themed collection in Rome on the day of the summer solstice. Le Grand Tour Raconté Par Van Cleef & Arpels revives the European journey that had its heyday in the 18th and 19th centuries, beginning in England with obligatory stops in Paris and Italy, often via Switzerland and Germany, before returning home. Lasting several years, the Grand Tour would be embarked upon by young aristocrats and the intelligentsia as a form of education and cultural enrichment. It makes sense for Van Cleef & Arpels to take on the theme, considering its own lust for travel: see its Egyptian-inspired jewels from the 1920s, its 1960s pieces that looked to India and Persia, or even the California-themed collection more than a decade ago.

Transformability is a house signature – so jewels won’t stay in the safe

“The Grand Tour is quite known in the UK but not so well known in France and even Italy. But then you tell people that tourism comes from the Grand Tour – and you get their attention,” says Nicolas Bos, president and CEO of Van Cleef & Arpels, who has long been fascinated by the tradition. That sense of discovery, or rediscovery, is apt for this collection: “It’s a bit of a tribute to the times when travel was knowledge.”

The 70-piece collection is themed around eight suites representing key destinations, from London to Baden-Baden. Rome’s Villa Medici hosted the launch. There are swishing, waist-long sautoirs hung with medallions and giant tassels; enormous clips that models threaded on silk belts and wore rakishly at the hip; and shoulder-grazing girandole earrings that evoke the ambitions of Renaissance jewellery. The Teatro ring is inspired by Rome’s majestic 55BC Teatro di Pompeo, featuring a 3.93ct Zambian emerald nestled in a circle of diamonds and play of golden steps. Or take the impressive Trésor Antique ruby and diamond chandelier earring, cascading with three large pendants: the jewel directly nods to a pair of Castellani earrings from the 1860s when the jeweller was inspired by archaeology and Etruscan art.

The jewel-tone waters of Venice make their way into the exquisite Chant Des Gondoliers necklace, set with 16 vivid turquoise cabochons, complemented by diamond-paved arches recalling the city’s low bridges. The maison pays further tribute to Italy’s cities in a quartet of gem-set Escale bracelets representing Venice, Rome, Florence and Naples, the mélange of luminous coloured gemstones laid in mosaic-like tableaux. Bos is particularly fond of this set. “It takes a rather wide bracelet as a rectangular canvas in a way, and uses it to feature a landscape,” he explains. “When worn, it strikes a good balance between the figurative – which evokes different cities – but also the abstract.”

Despite the historical references, the designs are distinguished by their modernity – many are transformable for multiwear. The Alps-inspired, tassel-style Fleuve De Glace pearl sautoir, for example, features detachable elements that enable the jewel to be worn in seven different ways, including two brooches, two bracelets and a shorter necklace. Transformability is a house signature: Van Cleef & Arpels’ historic Passe-Partout made a splash in 1938 for its ability to be worn as a necklace, choker, bracelet, belt or clip. Bos says that such engineering helps to ensure that what are essentially formal jewels won’t stay long in the safe. “They will be used, which is very nice.”

All of this year’s high-jewellery launches – unveiled at the start of summer and typically staged in exclusive destinations – have felt unapologetically escapist. This is because travel and luxury “both provide the same,” says Erwan Rambourg, HSBC’s global head of consumer and retail research, “to escape the day to day. The idea [today] is to think about things that are more positive, more aspirational, more fulfilling.” Global demand for private jets has risen more than 14 per cent since before 2020.

At the Van Cleef & Arpels launch, guests ambled through the sumptuous gardens, admiring jewels draped on performers in what was a notably private affair. “We are not looking for maximum impact and visibility,” says Bos. “I don’t care so much about getting hundreds of thousands of likes on an Instagram picture – I prefer to have 20 people attending a class at L’École [Van Cleef & Arpels’ own jewellery school] for the first time and really discovering our world.”

Model, Paula Soares at Select. Casting, Cococasting. Hair and make-up, Martina Lattanzi using Byredo and Kristin Ess. Photographer’s assistants, Edoardo Confort and Cristian Spaziani. Digital operator, Antonino Donato. Shot at Villa Medici, Rome