The Blooming and Withering in the “Impermanence” Haute Joaillerie Collection of the Parisian Jewelry House Boucheron

Twice a year, as is customary, Boucheron unveils its haute joaillerie collections. The winter collection typically focuses on interpreting the house’s historical heritage, while the summer one carries the subtitle of Carte Blanche. Both collections are crafted by Claire Choisne, Boucheron’s creative director. However, in the summer, as the name suggests, her imagination is completely unleashed, resulting in some of the most extraordinary and unpredictable collections in today's jewelry world. We have witnessed quite a lot in recent years, but this time Claire Choisne chose to explore her favorite theme – the transience of nature captured in eternal precious materials – in both collections. The winter collection was dedicated to the legacy of Frederick Boucheron and was titled "Untamed Nature," while the Carte Blanche collection is called "Impermanence."

The idea of capturing and preserving a delicate blossom has captivated Claire Choisne’s imagination for some time now. We recall how, in 2018, she attempted this in the “Eternal Flowers” collection in a very straightforward manner. By employing a special technology, real live flowers were transformed to be used in decorations, maintaining the texture and color of their petals. However, this time she has taken a different approach – all her flowers, branches, stems, and insects are crafted from metals and minerals, symbolically representing the cycle of blossoming and withering.

The "Impermanence" collection draws inspiration from the art of ikebana, where arrangements are crafted to highlight the beauty of the entire natural cycle, from blooming to withering. Upon arrival to the  Boucheron, we were welcomed by a large ikebana created by a Japanese master, designed to gradually fade and transform while maintaining its beauty. The collection itself features six ikebana arrangements that can be taken apart into individual pieces of jewelry, although you can only purchase the complete ikebana.

This is a black and white collection where the movement – whether aesthetic, emotional, or intellectual – transitions from light and whiteness to darkness and blackness.

The numbering here is done in reverse order: composition #6 represents transparency filled with light. This composition features a tulip, an eucalyptus branch and a dragonfly, crafted in borosilicate or sapphire glass and mother-of-pearl, adorned with diamonds and white gold. The tulip and the eucalyptus appear to be frozen in their delicate transparency. The tulip can be worn as a brooch, the eucalyptus branch can also serve as a brooch or a hair decoration, and the dragonfly transforms into a mono-earring.

Composition #1, featuring a poppy, a sweet pea, and a butterfly, embodies the contrasting concept of withering and darkness. The plants and the butterfly are crafted from aventurine and black glass, adorned with diamonds and black spinels, and set with onyx. To achieve absolute darkness, a literal black hole effect is created using titanium coated with the advanced Vantablack® coating, which absorbs 99.4% of visible light. Claire Choisne explains that she followed the development of this technology, which has been employed in watchmaking and art, and was inspired by Anish Kapoor’s works with Vantablack®. She had long desired to incorporate it into her collection, and it proved to be perfect for transforming light into darkness. The poppy can be worn as a headband or a brooch, the sweet pea blossom transforms into several brooches, and the butterfly becomes a shoulder brooch, all thanks to their magnetic fastener system.

Between these two, there are four more mini-ecosystems, each reflecting different stages of the transition from white to sulfur, from transparency to darkness. Each composition is arranged in a vase like a real ikebana, and together they create a perfectly magical impression. Having observed the creative genius of Claire Choisne for many seasons, we must admit that this time she has truly outdone herself. That said, I can practically predict that next summer we'll have to repeat these words for the new collection. 

Courtesy: Boucheron 

Text: Elena Stafyeva