Swarovski’s Spring Summer 2008 collection is drawn from the world’s major cities, inspired by urban effervescence, and a landscape dominated by skyscrapers and buildings with a seemingly endless number of windows.
“With pictograms that combine vehicles and robots, pixelation from video games, symbols used on road maps, and golden casino chips and dice, this collection is all about the excess of the city, its unbridled energy, and its irrepressible spirit. This is condensed into the ultra-structured lines of jewellery pieces and flashes of mirrored leather,” explains Nathalie Colin-Roblique, artistic director at Swarovski. “This collection is a kaleidoscope of everything you feel when discovering a city, and showcases a collage of overlapping, superimposed images.”
Swarovski’s latest collection is characterised by its graphic style, made up of clean, incisive, dynamic lines. The “Evening” necklace and cuff recall glass buildings that are designed in such a way that only their steel structure can be seen, and feature bright flashes of faceted, asymmetric crystal, that work like aurora borealis-coloured mirrors. This effect is maximised in the plexiglass “Especially” cuff featuring a pavé cabochon and highlighted in the “Effy” bag in faceted leather with the appearance of a silver mirror.
Inspired by the world of video games, pixels of full or pavé crystals appear on the “Exchange” earrings and necklaces. “On the “Exchange” ring, these effects reflect the appearance of a car’s bumpers, and surround the crystal,” notes Nathalie Colin-Roblique.
A ring’s pearl is caged in a pavé ball, a pair of earrings and a pendant in the “Eclipse” range. In the same way, the “Evanescent” rings and pendants contain an oversized, transparent, faceted crystal, and thus continues one of jewellery design’s best-loved traditions. “I wanted to add some 60s and 70s style references using hoops, balls and circles, while playing on the highly symbolic and excessive nature of oversized crystals and casinos.”
The playful “Ex Aequo” range, inspired by the casino, is particularly figurative. Playing cards created with metal and pavé crystal mimic the design of real cards with bends and playful imperfections, and are transformed into cuffs. Dollar signs appear in pavé crystal on small coins that hang from metal or silver bracelets and necklaces, while dice, good luck charms and bright stars hang from earrings, long necklaces, and golden chain bracelets, echoing the “Power” bag.
Inspired by the electric and electrifying atmosphere of the city, the “Energy” line features pavé crystal plug pendants, light bulbs, helmets and music players. At the same time, “Erika”, “Elvis” and “Teddy” – three little figures, articulated like robots – each feature pavé crystal bodies.
Inspired by fast-paced cities that never sleep, the Swarovski collection is at once excessive, imposing, oversized and hugely symbolic. It combines energy, movement and design, thus encapsulating the leitmotiv of cutting-edge fashion.
