VAN CLEEF & ARPELS | 'BALLERINA' CHALCEDONY, SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND BROOCH 梵克雅寶 | 'Ballerina' 藍玉髓 配 藍寶石 及 鑽石 別針

“Jewellery and dance inspire similar emotions: the pursuit of perfection, the dedication to precision and finesse, and a giddy sense of excitement”, an unmistakablepersonification of the Van Cleef& Arpels’ spirit; grace and beauty.

Soon after the opening of its New York City flagship store in 1939, designer Maurice Duvalet created the iconic Ballerina brooch inspired by Louis Arpels’ passion for the world of dance. The 1940s conception of these exquisite pieces saw immediate success with Van Cleef& Arpels’ elite American clientele, exemplifying joy and hope during the dark days of World War II.

Costumes adorned with diamonds and precious gemstones accentuate the whimsical variations of dance poses whilst each ballerina’s gesture is intricately expressed by the expertise of Van Cleef& Arpels, and the masters of craft behind the brand. Amongst the dazzling plethora of gemstone combinations, one variable remains consistent with all ballerina clips, the rose-cut diamond faces believed to add a hint of character to each ballerina’s charm.

In the 1960s, Louis’ passion came to life when Claude Arpels met legendary choreographer George Balanchine who choreographed theJewelsballet, one of the most renowned works of the twentieth century celebrating the beauty and glamour of precious gemstones upon encountering Van Cleef& Arpels’ ballerina brooches.

Various ballerina clips paying homage to notable ballets and dancers such as the Russian ballet,the 40^th anniversary of George Balanchine’s Jewelsballet, eighteenth century French dancer Anne de Cupis de Camargo and Russian dancer Anna Pavlova have placed these sophisticated jewels in the focus of high jewellery collectors including Marjorie Merriweather Post, Jessie Woolworth Donahue and Barbara Hutton. Van Cleef& Arpels’ ballerinas maintained their desirability from the 1940s through to the 1960s and continues to be celebrated today for their timeless elegance and grace, marrying the arts of jewellery and dance in one highly collectable form.

盡善盡美、精益求精且令人目眩神迷，瑰麗的珠寶堪比精彩的舞蹈表演，能帶給人們奇妙卻相似的感動，亦如梵克雅寶的品牌精神，可謂佳人入世、獨一無二。

1939年，梵克雅寶在紐約的旗艦店開幕，受到Louis Arpels 先生對舞蹈藝術的激情所影響，設計師Maurice Duvalet創作了品牌標誌性的芭蕾舞伶別針。精美猶如藝術品的芭蕾舞伶系列自1940年問世即大獲成功，廣受美國精英階層藏家青睞，在那些被二戰籠罩在陰影下的日子裡，充滿希望和愉悅的芭蕾舞伶也許給他們帶去了一絲慰藉。

芭蕾舞表演中優美的服飾和動人的舞姿在梵克雅寶工匠大師們的手下用鑽石和各種珍貴宝石組合再現，她们的窈窕身影 幻化出各种不同姿态的珠宝，身穿以珍贵宝石铺镶而成的瑰丽服饰，而在這些多姿多彩的寶石混搭中，有一處卻始終不變，即所有芭蕾舞者的 嬌柔臉龐均採用玫瑰型切割鑽石呈現，其特有的流光溢彩或給每位芭蕾舞者平添一分迷人氣質。

上世紀60年代， Claude Arpels先生遇到了傳奇芭蕾舞蹈大師George Balanchine，志趣相投的兩人同樣熱愛宝石和舞蹈，George受到梵克雅寶芭蕾舞伶設計的啟發，創作了20世紀最著名的芭蕾舞劇之一，禮讚珍稀寶石的舞劇《Jewels》（珠寶）。

從18世紀著名的法國芭蕾舞蹈大師Anne de Cupis de Camargo到俄羅斯首席芭蕾舞家Anna Pavlova，從經典的俄羅斯芭蕾舞表演到George Balanchine專為珠寶設計的芭蕾舞劇，梵克雅寶的設計師們不斷汲取靈感，芭蕾舞伶系列受到當時一大批珠寶藏家的認同與喜愛，包括Marjorie Merriweather Post，Jessie Woolworth Donahue 和Barbara Hutton等等。從40年代問世直至今日，梵克雅寶的芭蕾舞伶系列以其優雅經典的設計將舞蹈和珠寶完美結合，自始至終都是珠寶藏家們不容錯過的藝術佳品。