A decade within the making, the Cartier exhibition at London’s V&A museum nearly instantly bought out its first six weeks. Billed as an exploration of how the three Cartier brothers propelled the corporate based by their grandfather in Paris in 1847 to worldwide renown within the twentieth Century, it’s an intriguing iceberg of a present with its most fascinating features taking part in second fiddle to the visible splendor.
And splendor is a becoming descriptor. Upon getting into the Sainsbury Gallery, remodeled by moody lighting, viewers are met by the Manchester Tiara. The piece, commissioned by the Dowager Duchess of Manchester in 1903 and displayed alone with its 1,500+ diamonds lit by a gently rotating highlight, glitters seductively at guests as if to say, “This is what you got here for.” Driving residence the purpose, the exhibition’s grand finale is a complete room of tiaras—the gem-laden headwear pointedly bookend the present.
Regalia of this diploma of opulence and glamor naturally had opulent and glamorous house owners and wearers, and “Cartier” references a veritable Who’s Who of the previous 100 years: magnates, politicians, businessmen, Vanderbilts, Asquiths, Hollywood royalty and precise royalty. The Pineflower Tiara, a comparatively restrained creation in comparison with a few of its fellows, speaks to the fashions of the day with its emerald-cut aquamarines and a glut of diamonds. Commissioned as an anniversary reward in 1938 by George VI for his spouse, Queen Elizabeth, it takes inspiration from Artwork Deco, which celebrates its centenary this yr. A number of of the gadgets have been loaned from King Charles III and his household, who’ve an extended relationship with Cartier and have been, the exhibition emphasizes, instrumental to the jewellery home’s burgeoning world fame within the early 1900s. King Edward VII commissioned tiaras for his 1902 Coronation, granting Cartier a Royal Warrant quickly after. He would famously name them “the jeweler of kings and the King of Jewelers.”
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The primary room is organized geographically: Egypt, Iran, the Islamic World, the Russian Empire, China and Japan. We learn the way a fascination for the far-flung locations was on the core of many Cartier creations, such because the multicolored “tutti-frutti” baubles impressed by the jewels of India and infrequently created with them. The “Egyptomania” which exploded after Howard Carter’s discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun expresses itself in an array of blue-glazed faience scarabs and miniature sarcophagi. A wall textual content touches on the problematic sourcing of gems over the a long time, however how interwoven early Cartier historical past is with tales of Orientalism, colonialism and empire stays, for essentially the most half, subtext.
Accompanying the ornaments are mounted pages from the books that served as design inspiration. One instance is an authentic drawing by designer and architect Owen Jones, printed in his 1857 work The Grammar of Decoration, depicting particulars of architectural ornament in Cairo. The slow-moving queue making its manner across the Sainsbury Gallery doesn’t linger lengthy at these specific shows, that are unable to compete with the gems. However arguably, these are the true point of interest of the exhibition.
They traveled right here, they noticed this stuff, they pored over these books. Right here is how the brothers and their craftspeople adopted patterns and motifs and remodeled them. The vary of objects from trinkets to heirlooms makes one marvel about what Cartier and their shoppers felt was worthy of immortalization and why. Interpretations of components from the pure world abound: a diamond-encrusted rose brooch for Princess Margaret, ostentatious flamingos and panthers with intimidating glittering eyes. The religious and mythological seem, too. There are a number of gem-studded Buddhas and brooches depicting Egyptian goddesses. Fashioning finery, the present suggests, is without doubt one of the methods the voracious consumption of the world will be distilled into inventive creation.
Like different jewelry-focused exhibitions, “Cartier” highlights the craftsmanship of one of many nice haute joaillerie homes. However this specific present asks the viewer to contemplate not simply the world of adornments but additionally the world of concepts. It’s refreshing to see an establishment try, whereas showcasing lots of of attention-grabbing treasures, to emphasise the ephemeral—the synthesis of inspiration—over the bodily act of craft. It speaks to the savvy curation of this “blockbuster exhibition,” which eschews the same old drive to justify craft as being worthy of show alongside fantastic artwork within the hallowed halls of artwork museums. It additionally speaks to why the V&A, which has a shocking everlasting assortment of jewels and a formidable artwork library that features Jones’ ebook, appears like essentially the most applicable setting for this historic exhibition.
“Cartier” is on view on the V&A Museum in London by November 16, 2025
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