A Desert Flower by Any Other Name

The Cactus de Cartier collection shows off the Parisian Jewellery powerhouse’s talent in turning floral motifs into remarkable Jewellery designs, discovers Melissa Pearce.

CARTIER’S ARDOUR FOR floral motifs has seen it venerate orchids, wild roses, narcissuses, poppies and parma violets in some of the finest floral jewels in history. But for the first time, a more unexpected plant, the resilient succulent, has inspired one of its jewellery collections — the Cactus de Cartier.

The 13-piece collection of rings, bracelets and necklaces captures the spikes and petals of cacti (that manage to blossom in spite of foreboding arid landscapes), as well the changing desert light as day moves into night, through its use of yellow gold and vibrant coloured gemstones. Emeralds, chrysoprase, carnelians and lapis lazuli stoke an exciting and slightly dangerous palette that evokes the Wild West.

In the same way that Cartier’s Paris Nouvelle Vague collection (2013) was conceived for bold women, so is the Cactus de Cartier. Think of eccentric Spanish actress Rossy de Palma and Italian bombshell Bianca Brandolini d’Adda. The former has been described as a Picasso come-to-life and is a muse of film director Pedro Almondovar and designer Jean-Paul Gaultier; the latter, an Italian socialite with a supermodel body, who is often found on the front row of important fashion shows. Both women were guests at the collection’s launch at Paris’ Palais de Tokyo in early July, just before the Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week commenced.