Lot Essay
Cf. Sylvie Raulet, "Van Cleef & Arpels", Rizzoli, New York, 1987, page 188
In the years leading up to the Second World War, jewellery became increasingly sculptural, particularly that of the Artist-Jewellers Raymond Templier and Jean Fouquet. The production of the more mainstream houses such as Van Cleef & Arpels became bolder, but not as excessively three dimensional as that of the aforementioned creators.
The present bracelet, produced circa 1937, is an exception. It is highly sculptural and clearly illustrates the twenties' and thirties' fascination with machine aesthetics. This tendency first became evident in the painting world where artists like Fernand Leger and Charles Sheeler tried to put to canvas the overwhelming feeling of living in a century in which technology was so rapidly changing: automobiles were becoming faster, skyscrapers were going up quickly, industry was becoming much more sophisticated....The jewellers did not delay in absorbing the aesthetic leanings introduced by the artistic sphere, creating objects like this "rouleau" bracelet.
In the years leading up to the Second World War, jewellery became increasingly sculptural, particularly that of the Artist-Jewellers Raymond Templier and Jean Fouquet. The production of the more mainstream houses such as Van Cleef & Arpels became bolder, but not as excessively three dimensional as that of the aforementioned creators.
The present bracelet, produced circa 1937, is an exception. It is highly sculptural and clearly illustrates the twenties' and thirties' fascination with machine aesthetics. This tendency first became evident in the painting world where artists like Fernand Leger and Charles Sheeler tried to put to canvas the overwhelming feeling of living in a century in which technology was so rapidly changing: automobiles were becoming faster, skyscrapers were going up quickly, industry was becoming much more sophisticated....The jewellers did not delay in absorbing the aesthetic leanings introduced by the artistic sphere, creating objects like this "rouleau" bracelet.