What role does high jewelry play in society today? People consider high jewelry, finally, at last, as a true art form. As demonstrated by the success of each and every high jewelry exposition in museums around the world, people are attracted by the rarity, the beauty, and the expression of excellent craftsmanship.
What core values do you share with your students? The mission of L’Ecole is to share the jewelry culture with the general public and to make a clear distinction between education and business. We also aim to maintain an uncompromising level of quality in content, teaching methods, learning environment, and...in every tool we use to educate.
What aspects of Van Cleef & Arpels’ rich heritage does L’Ecole teach its students?
The School of Jewelry Arts is supported by Van Cleef & Arpels, but is not dedicated to Van Cleef & Arpels. However, we can consider that the school’s pursuit of excellence in accomplishing its mission is inherited from the Maison Van Cleef & Arpels’ values.
Do you notice a different approach to fine jewelry depending on the country in which the L’Ecole classes take place? There is no real difference. Jewelry touches deeply a universal aspect of humanity.
What’s in the pipeline for 2018? The school will continue expanding its nomadic program to New York, Dubai, Seoul, Beijing, and Hong Kong. We have an exhaustive set of initiatives to support education in the arts by related institutions, including the publication of books dedicated to jewelry — such as Flora, already in circulation, and Fauna, just published, with others to come.
We run the Legacy Program in Hong Kong, which invites young artists working in different media to submit works. When selected, the winners go to Paris for a cultural week, including courses at the school.
And there’ll be exhibitions of artists who work in the jewelry medium, in our school space in Paris, such as the upcoming October 13 exhibition of Daniel Brush’s work, being shown in France for the first time.
Image: L'Ecole PLace Vendôme lecolevancleefarpels.comArticle from the Rapaport Magazine - October 2017. To subscribe click here.