Patek Philippe. Montres d’Art « Les Tigres » en platine, cadran en émail cloisonné et gravé. échanges s’intensifient. À la soie, s’ajoutent la porcelaine, puis l’émail, la laque, le jade et le corail gravés… Les motifs traditionnels chinois inspirent aussi les créateurs européens, dont au premier chef le dragon, mais aussi la chimère, le chien de Fo, le phénix… Cette influence s’exerce sur l’ébénisterie traditionnelle, notamment française, mais aussi sur les bijoux et les montr es. Le splendide Cabinet chinois de Boucheron, installé place Vendôme, en témoigne avec éclat. Tout comme les créations des grands joailliers ou des horlogers. À l’inverse, dès le XIX e siècle, ils trouvent les chemins de la Chine qui devient aussi un débouché commer cial. Des marques horlogères suisses, comme Jaquet Droz ou Vacheron Constantin, ont des attaches en Chine dès cette époque. L’ART DÉCO AMOUREUX DE LA CHINE Avec l’essor de l’Art Déco, l’influence artistique chinoise connaît un sommet. Maître de cette période, Cartier a créé dans les années 20-30 de magnifiques bijoux, objets et pendules qui marient l’apport chinois et le style typique de cette période. Du 5 septembre au 22 novembr e 2009, le joaillier a présenté à Pékin, au Palace Museum, en plein cœur de la Cité Inter dite, un ensemble exceptionnel de 350 pièces inspirées du style chinois. Van Cleef & Arpels, autre grande signature joaillière, cède lui aussi aux charmes raffinés de cet art venu de l’est. Coco Chanel, l’icône de la mode, tombe sous le charme de la laque chinoise, et installe de somptueux paravents Coromandel dans son salon parisien. RECORD GROWTH When China Awakes… is the title of a 1973 book by scholar Alain Peyr efitte. Well, China has awoken and the figures never stop proving it. While the West, America and Europe both, struggles through a recession with no certain end in sight, China flaunts record growth rates : 11.4% in 2007, 9% in 2008, 8+% in 2009 and in 2010 it might well top that figure. A BOOMING MARKET Growth means more wealth and more purchasing power. The luxury market is cashing in big time. The number of Chinese dollar -billionaires hasn't stopped gr owing, estimated at 101 in 2008 and 130 in 2009 (Le Point). Forbes magazine informs us that in one year the wealth of China's 400 richest people has shotup from 173 to 314 billion dollars ! EASTERN WIND So China is now a vital market for Eur ope's luxury sector. The tide has tur ned. Until now the Middle Kingdom has supplied the West not just with consumer goods but also with constant artistic inspiration since Antiquity. Chinese silks were prized in Ancient Rome. By the 19th centur y the China-Eur ope trade r oute was so well established that a Ger man historian christened it the Silk Road. In addition to silk came porcelain, enamel, lacquer, engraved jade and coral, and more. Europe's artists were inspired by traditional Chinese motifs, mostly dragons but also chimeras, Fo dogs, phoenixes etc. This influence was seen in traditional cabinetmaking, French especially, but also in jewellery and watches, of which Boucher on's splendid Cabinet Chinois on Place Vendôme offered superb pr oof as did creations by other gr eat jewellers and watchmakers. Conversely, from the 19th century they found that the road from China worked both ways and they began selling there. Swiss watch brands Jaquet Droz and Vacheron Constantin have Chinese connections dating back to that era. ART DECO LOVES CHINA The Art Decomovement was the high point of China's influence on the ar ts. In the 1920s-30s the master of that period, Cartier, created magnificent jewellery, ornaments and clocks that mixed Chinese elements into the style of the day. Van Cleef & Arpels, another great jewellery signature, also gave in to the r efined charms of this art from the East. Fashion icon Coco Chanel fell head over heels for Chinese lacquerwork and installed sumptuous Coromandel screens in her Paris drawing room. Cartier. Sculpture Buddha, pièce historique ! NICK WELSH POUR CARTIER. avril-mai 2010 www.cotemagazine.com JEWELLERY/TIMEWEAR MADE IN CHINA 73