SILENT SYMPHONIES

CREATIVE DIRECTION: MARNE SCHWARTZ & DANÉ STOJANOVIC  
PHOTOGRAPHY: VLADIMIR MARTI 
FASHION DIRECTION: LAURA JANE BROWN 
PRODUCER: STEFF HAWKER
LIGHTING ASSISTANT: MARK ANTHONY DIRECTO NAVARRO
FASHION ASSISTANT: CHARLOTTE MARSH-WILLIAMS
WORDS: AVA GILCHRIST

Discover the transformative qualities of sound and its inextricable link with nature through one of the most sacred and omnipotent fauna. As the name suggests, ‘Silent Symphonies’ reimagines the interplay of music between natural forces through the lens of high jewellery. Such as this soaring perennial plant represents the great feats reached in the kingdoms of biology, this technically crafted and alluring bijoux embodies the pinnacle of artisan mastery. In highlighting the capabilities of human dexterity, we recontextualise the songs of life in static form. Pausing these aural compositions in a moment of observation that connects the technical with the natural. In juxtaposing the crafted with the raw, we invite you to ponder on the innate pageantry embedded into the bedrock of wildlife.

We look at the sophisticated codes of Tiffany & Co. master jeweller, Jean Schlumberger. Inspired by Schlumberger’s virtuosity, Tiffany & Co. sets magnificent stones in whimsical, sculptural designs. Yet, here in this setting against the backdrop of bare bamboo, they mirror the intricacy of the form they are inspired by. We place what is arguably Schlumberger’s magnum opus, the ‘Bird on a Rock’ brooch, back in its rightful ecological habitat: amongst the trees. Though similar to how virtuoso jewellery designers often subvert canon, we’ve offered a surreal likeness of this mise en scène by positioning the gilded statuette against a folded fan; a stopover in bamboo’s lifecycle as a treasured material.

Elsewhere, we look to the creations of luxuriates like Piaget, Hermès and Cartier to supplant the carved yellow and white gold bijouterie as the ultimate decryption of nature’s elegance. In each interlinking cuff, knotted twist or rigid linework, we observe how nature fuels creation, and in turn, return these designs to the forms of which they’re forged. It’s in these diminutive moments – watching a plant curve in search of sunlight or running your fingers against the ridges of nodes after each fresh sprout – that the grandiosity of life finds new reverence. In proposing new forms and placing these two facets of design in an earthly setting, we invoke the serene, meditative sensation incurred through tranquil incantations. Poetry in motion, captured in a single frame. Painting with the colours of the wind, if you will.

“Silent symphonies” IS PUBLISHED IN THE 7TH EDITION OF GRAZIA MIDDLE EAST. ORDER YOUR COPY HERE.