Schiaparelli’s Haute Couture Collection Inspired by Stolen Louvre Jewels and Michelangelo
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Daniel Roseberry, the creative director of Schiaparelli, found inspiration for the fashion house’s latest haute couture collection in an unexpected place: the 2012 theft of jewels from the Louvre Museum. While walking home from the office after the news broke, Roseberry envisioned reimagining the stolen treasures. This concept, combined with a last-minute visit to the Sistine Chapel, formed the core of the collection themed “The Agony and the Ecstasy.”
Recreating Lost Treasures
The collection featured a striking recreation of the Empress Eugenie Tiara, originally created for Eugénie de Montijo, wife of Napoleon III, in 1853 by jeweler Alexandre-Gabriel Lemonnier. The original tiara is renowned for its intricate design, boasting over 200 pearls, 2,000 diamonds, and 1,000 rose-cut diamonds arranged in a leaf and foliage pattern. Jewelry historian Marion Fasel notes the extraordinary rarity and cost of the natural pearls used in the original piece, elevating its status as a truly important object. The Jewelry Editor details the recreation’s three-dimensional quality.
Another piece recreated was a necklace inspired by a gold, silver, and diamond bow brooch, once a buckle from a diamond belt containing over 4,000 stones. The Louvre acquired the brooch in 2008 for a reported $10 million after it was sold at auction in 1877.
Michelangelo’s Influence: “The Agony and the Ecstasy”
Roseberry’s designs went beyond mere replication, becoming “more three dimensional” and aligning with the collection’s theme. The designer credits a spontaneous visit to the Sistine Chapel during a creative retreat near Rome as a pivotal source of inspiration.He was especially struck by Michelangelo’s frescoes,especially the ceiling painted between 1508 and 1512.
Roseberry emphasized that Michelangelo’s work wasn’t about depicting events,but about evoking emotion. Vogue reports Roseberry’s statement: “Crane your neck skyward, and thought stops.” He described Michelangelo’s creation as “a wild, visually rambunctious, vulnerable and romantic imagining of God, religion, faith, and the human condition.”
Ultimately,Roseberry aimed to capture the emotional core of the artistic process. “Here is agony and ecstasy comingled, terrible and exquisite,” he explained.”The entire emotional heartbeat of this season became not what does it look like, but how do we feel when we make it?”
Key Takeaways
- schiaparelli’s latest haute couture collection was inspired by the 2012 theft of jewels from the Louvre and a visit to the Sistine Chapel.
- the collection features recreations of the Empress eugenie Tiara and a diamond bow brooch, both historically significant pieces.
- Daniel Roseberry focused on evoking emotion thru his designs, drawing inspiration from Michelangelo’s artistic approach.
- the collection’s theme, “The Agony and the Ecstasy,” reflects the complex and powerful feelings associated with artistic creation.