Behind the scenes of the creation of Louis Vuitton Bravery jewelry
In 1832, a 10-year-old boy from the Jura lost his mother. His farmer father remarried a cruel woman and died shortly after. The boy, then 13, left home to seek his fortune in Paris. Living on odd jobs along the way, it took him more than 2 years to cover the 500 kilometers separating him from the capital. That child was Louis Vuitton. 20 years after his departure, he would be the artisan behind trunks made for the Empress of France. 200 years later, he is one of the luxury benchmarks in the world.
The exceptional story of Louis Vuitton
“It’s like a fairy tale,” declared Francesca Amfitheatrof, Artistic Director for Jewelry and Watches at Louis Vuitton. Vuitton’s early life journey served as her inspiration for the creation of this year’s high jewelry collection. An incredible series of 90 pieces named Bravery, released specially to celebrate the bicentenary of this epic tale.
Amfitheatrof resides far from Vuitton’s France, in Connecticut. She lives there with her husband Ben Curwin, a managing partner at an investment consulting firm, and her teenage children. The Litchfield County property, built in 1880, spans nearly 15 acres and includes a small cluster of white buildings, including Amfitheatrof’s studio.
Louis Vuitton’s push into luxury jewelry
The legend that is Louis Vuitton has long served as a symbol of wealth in popular culture, though in reference to the brand’s iconic leather goods. But recently, the brand has intensified its investments in its jewelry division. Hiring Amfitheatrof in 2018 was the starting point. In early 2020, Vuitton made waves in the world of gemstones by purchasing the second-largest rough diamond in history. The 1,758-carat Sewelo diamond, mined the previous year, is so large that it likely wouldn't fit in a human mouth.
If popular culture is a barometer, it is telling that the first episode of the Netflix reality show, Bling Empire, does not focus on a Vuitton bag, but on jewelry. Titled “Necklacegate 90210,” the climactic scene of that episode features 2 Beverly Hills millionaires wearing the same pink sapphire necklace from Vuitton’s 2012 high jewelry collection, even though the piece is one-of-a-kind.
Louis Vuitton jewelry: the Amfitheatrof style
Amfitheatrof’s designs for the brand’s high jewelry collections are dynamic and modern. She describes her technique as painting executed with precious stones. “I tend to use a lot of stones,” she stated. “Since I’m not a gemologist, I’m a bit more radical about it.” Her team was “perplexed” when she arrived. “This is Place Vendôme,” she explains, referring to the location of Vuitton’s Parisian flagship store, situated on the famous square built in honor of Louis XIV. “It’s very classic.”
Yet, Amfitheatrof’s “more is more” spirit suits a brand whose definition is likely not boxed-in classicism. Le Mythe, a multi-strand luxury necklace in sapphire and emerald adorned with a central Vuitton fleur-de-lis, “contains 3 huge stones,” Amfitheatrof explains. “Most people would make 3 necklaces out of them. While I want them all on the same piece.” Another Louis Vuitton necklace, named La Constellation d’Hercule because it was inspired by the stars visible at the time of Vuitton’s birth, includes more than 30 beetle-sized tanzanites, tsavorites, and opals, like an image downloaded from Hubble, plus 15 Fleur and Star-cut diamonds, patented by Vuitton.
“No other house has patented a diamond cut,” stated Amfitheatrof. She credits Vuitton CEO Michael Burke, who personally approves every stone purchase, for building the brand’s top-tier team of gemologists. Her favorite piece from the Bravery collection is actually a duo. It consists of brilliant bracelets with twin center stones, a diamond and a Muzo Colombian emerald. Named L’Aventure, this Louis Vuitton bracelet can be worn as a cuff with its 2 components, or individually, one on each wrist. “It’s so balanced,” she says, “that there is nothing to change.”
Francesca Amfitheatrof’s creative process
How does Francesca Amfitheatrof work? “I go see our CEO and say: I have this idea,” she stated while describing her creative process. “And then I step back.” She builds a mood board and divides her main narrative into stories. In the Bravery example, the 2-plus-year trek of young Louis was split into thematic chapters. “I can’t just say, oh here, we have beautiful stars,” she mocks theatrically when discussing the Hercules constellation. “Let’s repeat them everywhere, and that will be the inspiration for the collection. That would be boring.”
Storytelling is now a buzzword in sales. But for Amfitheatrof, it is simply how her brain works. Her father was the bureau chief for Time magazine in Russia. Her mother was head of public relations for Valentino and Armani. Her paternal grandfather was the composer and conductor behind the music for Lassie Come Home, and her father was a Russian novelist. As she puts it, “I have always been surrounded by a certain depth of mind.”
The dichotomy of luxury
Last year was not easy for the luxury sector. LVMH’s revenue went from over 53 billion euros in 2019 to about 44.7 billion in 2020. But, according to Amfitheatrof, “high jewelry was truly reconsidered during COVID. People struggled, especially very wealthy people, to be satisfied because they could suddenly no longer indulge their passions. Jewelry was no longer just incredible investments. You can also wear them and enjoy them, husbands can see them on their wives. The world is full of shocking disparities, and the pandemic highlighted that in a particularly striking way.” Is this dichotomy something Amfitheatrof has struggled with? “No,” she says. “No. You see, my industry is not one where everything changes quickly. I know that what I create will outlive me. So I really have to think timelessly.”
Louis Vuitton: an exceptional destiny for exceptional jewelry
Scarcity in fashion is almost always orchestrated. In the world of high jewelry, supply cannot truly be increased; one can only give the illusion of a broader supply. It is believed that most of the gold extracted from the bowels of the Earth was deposited, like priceless space debris, by a meteorite that collided with our planet in its early days. Our diamonds are mysterious; they form 150 kilometers below the Earth’s surface over hundreds of millions of years. In this sense, time is truly a luxury commodity. And to preserve its value, a Vuitton gemstone must never have been treated with oil (with the exception of certain emeralds) or heat (which alters the color). Or have been lab-grown. In a way, this philosophy is consistent with the history of Louis Vuitton.
“He could have taken 2 weeks to get to Paris,” stated Amfitheatrof about Vuitton, whose home region is perhaps better known for the Large Hadron Collider, which straddles the Swiss border not far from the Jura mountains. “He chose that moment to become the man he wanted to be. And I think that’s phenomenal,” she concluded.
