s their quest for beauty is boundless and their open-mindedness limitless, Cartier craftsmen and designers approach creation with a perpetual momentum. What guides them? For each new collection, their expert knowledge, forged by curiosity, puts them at the forefront of a new beginning, an infinitely renewed impetus that allows them to journey into the heart of Cartier style as if for the very first time.
A journey through which the Maison’s fundamentals are approached from a new, unexpected angle. A productive exploration of the Maison’s savoir-faire and creative practices experienced through the light of a new prism.
Designing precious works of architecture, expanding the possibilities of lines and the abstract, reinventing the palette of chromatic harmonies; celebrating life and the world’s horizons: the Maison’s stylistic domains are approached with the same freedom—and taken even further.
Cartier’s High Jewellery collection, Le Voyage Recommencé is being launched with more than 90 never-before-seen pieces, the first stop on an inspirational journey.
Everything at Cartier revolves around the purity of lines, the balance of shapes and volumes, the play of proportions and the final harmony of the entire piece. A strong vision that presides when structures of light are born.
Animating the inanimate, freeing yourself from everything static: this is the feat achieved by this creation. A composition boasting a strong visual impact that unfolds around a 19.27-carat Ceylon sapphire and produces a striking sensation of motion. Inspired by the dresses of the whirling dervishes, this necklace forms a swirling series of curves and counter-curves. The voluminous design is punctuated by arabesques on which the light dances.
For the Sama necklace, Computer Aided Design (CAD) was used for its extreme precision, required to conceive a three-dimensional structure of one piece to transcribe the creative concept behind the necklace. Thickness, tilt and precise proportions: every swirl is fitted to the nearest millimetre. To ensure that these precious swirls sit as close to the skin as possible, the craftsmen have integrated tiny invisible articulations to the central motif.
At Cartier, it all starts with the stones, they bring out the emotion and the intuition of the sublime. Here, a 0.92-carat grey-violet diamond forms the centrepiece of this ring. An exceptional gem due to the rarity of its purple colour and its weight, which Cartier has integrated into the heart of a miniature structure, like a vortex of light, punctuated by relief and volume. Half-moon diamonds release their radiance around the central stone, transforming its shape and brilliance through a mysterious halo.
Geometry and contrast are two elements that make up the Cartier style. On the one hand, they are based on form and pattern, developed around symmetry or asymmetry, and on the other, the strength of contrasts.
For Cartier, gemstones with character are the raison d’être of every unique creation. The Claustra necklace showcases a set of shield diamonds, including a remarkable 4.02-carat specimen, at the centre of a complex structure made up of broken lines. The effects of perspective and interplays of relief are multiplied throughout, whilst light vibrates and circulates. Onyx alternates with openwork and diamonds in a constantly reinvented contrast that is emblematic of the Maison.
In the great Cartier tradition of transformable pieces, this necklace can be separated in two. This was an ambitious technical challenge. It involved creating an illusion of unity while at the same time making it possible to split the set into two. Jewellers worked to ensure that the lines between both parts hold and fit together when worn. Combined, they are seamlessly assembled in a layered structure with recessed and raised motifs to offer a coherent, formidable aesthetic. Achieving this feat brought an increased challenge for the Cartier master jewellers to accomplish.
Black and white: an iconic combination that Cartier introduced into its repertoire at the beginning of the 20th century, before the period that became known as Art Deco. Whether in onyx, enamel or lacquer, the Maison understood the power of black and used it to accentuate the geometry in its designs. Today, this essential element of Cartier’s style adds rhythm and movement in a modern manner.
There is nothing romantic or sweet when it comes to Cartier’s representation of nature, a creative tension that ranges from hyper-realism to stylisation and even abstraction.
With the Panthère Givrée necklace, stylisation and figuration interact with one another. First, there is the feline’s head, realistic from the tip of its nose to its almond-shaped emerald eyes and pointed ears. Then there is its coat, which is pixelated into a cloud of geometric shapes and spotted with onyx. A masterpiece, the panther appears to watch over a set of three aquamarines totalling 20.33 carats with a powerful chromatic intensity. Fine touches of lapis lazuli punctuate the composition and play on the contrast.
The panther, Cartier’s feline. In 1914, Louis Cartier borrowed the animal’s coat to decorate a platinum, diamond and onyx watch. The spotted motif caused a sensation, and the panther made its debut in the jewellery world. Jeanne Toussaint, who was appointed Creative Director in 1933, rendered it iconic. From Daisy Fellowes and María Félix to Vanessa Kirby today, there is a long list of people who see the Cartier panther as a sensual, independent and liberated alter ego.
Cartier has always had a passion for the world and its cultures. This taste for curiosity is the legacy of a long lineage that is more contemporary than ever.
A necklace that invites you on a journey... A creation that lends itself to the temptation of travel and offers a unique interpretation of one of the founding themes of Cartier’s style: Islamic art and the splendour of its architecture. Everything is presented in its most refined and graphic form—the interplay of lines, motifs and symmetry. An intensity that is matched by the power of chromatic harmony between emeralds from Zambia and turquoises cut to measure by the lapidary. In keeping with Cartier’s tradition of transformable pieces, the central pendant can be detached and worn as a brooch.
In 1903, Louis Cartier discovered the “Islamic arts” exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. Geometric motifs, interplays of lines and arabesques became part of the Maison’s repertoire, reflecting its taste for stylised forms and abstraction. At the same time, Louis Cartier was encouraging experimentation with chromatic combinations, which continued throughout the 1910s. The combination of blue and green, known as the peacock motif, is an example of this. Bringing these two colours together was a bold creative decision at a time when, in Europe, they were considered to clash. The peacock motif would become a Cartier signature.
In addition to the unique pieces in the High Jewellery collection, a collection consisting of two sets of jewellery has been created from this Voyage Recommencé.
The Unda necklace features sixty-seven emerald cabochons of varying sizes rippling through a multitude of diamond-paved rays. The graphic and dazzlingly severe structure contrasts with the acidic brilliance and roundness of the gemstones: two opposing forces which, when in contact with one another, create a synergy that radiates throughout the necklace.
To enhance this structure, the gemstone experts have selected stones to match according to their colour and size, and the craftsmen then set the stones. By combining the links one by one, the jewellers were able to transcribe the motif’s waves and create an imperceptible set on the skin.
The starting point for the VOLTEA necklace was using one of the Maison’s classic colour combinations—red and black—as an element to punctuate and set the rhythm for a series of voluminous half-moons of diamond pavé.
The lapidariescut each interspersed ball individually and inserted them into this rose gold structure, spacing them out to avoid any contact. Like three cardinal points, coral beads are encircled by an open onyx frame and studded with a diamond that structures the entire piece. An energy flow spreads from one to the next in regular waves.
Like taking a breath, this openwork gives the necklace fluidity and suppleness on the skin.
Maison Cartier is constantly striving to improve its traditions of excellence and broaden its ethical, environmental and social practices and commitments.
In this regard, through the Coloured Gemstones Working Group and the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC)—whose Code of Practices has been extended to rubies, sapphires and emeralds—the Maison encourages the development of best practices throughout the industry. In addition to applying rigorously controlled internal standards of excellence and quality, the Maison requires its suppliers to adhere to the same responsible practices and encourages and supports their RJC certification.
In order to continuously improve, Cartier strives to develop best practices and raise industry standards.
Driven by the common belief that Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the dream of being a responsible industry can only be reached through collaborative initiatives, Cartier, supported by Richemont and Kering, in partnership with the Responsible Jewellery Council, have teamed up to expand and consolidate their efforts by launching the Watch & Jewellery Initiative 2030, which aims to develop a sustainable, climate-resilient industry that conserves resources and promotes inclusion.
