The lilac is one of the recurring flower subjects in the work of JAR, the Paris maison founded by Joel Arthur Rosenthal in 1977 at 7 Place Vendôme. JAR lilac brooches have appeared at auction and in exhibition since the late 1980s and represent a quintessential expression of the maison's approach to flower jewellery, with their fine pavé, gradated colour and dark-patinated mounting.

The Subject

The lilac, with its dense conical clusters of small four-petalled blossoms, presents a particular challenge in fine jewellery because it requires the rendering of many tiny units arranged in three dimensions rather than a single large flower head. JAR's flower studies tend toward this kind of complex botanical subject, and the lilac sits alongside the maison's pansies, camellias, sweet peas, tulips and rose petals as one of its established themes.

Construction

JAR lilac brooches are typically built up around a carved metal substrate that supports the volume of the flower cluster, with each individual blossom rendered as a small four-pointed unit pavé-set with violet, purple, lilac, white and pale-pink calibrated stones in sapphire, diamond, amethyst and tourmaline. The clusters are constructed to read at multiple depths, with stones running from pale and washed at the edges of the cluster to deeper saturated tones at its centre, producing the impression of a real lilac panicle in flower.

Leaves, where included, are executed in green tsavorite or green sapphire pavé over a silver and gold core. The mounting metal is blackened so that the brooch reads as pure colour, with the JAR signature absence of visible bright metal.

Notable Examples

A particularly important JAR lilac brooch in violet sapphire and diamond pavé was offered at Christie's Magnificent Jewels New York and featured in the Metropolitan Museum's 2013 retrospective Jewels by JAR. Other JAR lilacs have been documented at Sotheby's auctions, with each piece distinct in stone selection and arrangement. The auction history of these brooches consistently reflects the strong premiums achieved by the maison's flower studies.

Position in the Maison's Output

The lilac brooches are among the most architecturally complex of JAR's flower jewels, calling for the construction of dozens of small pavé-set sub-elements within a single design, and they are accordingly considered among the more demanding examples of the maison's bench technique. Like the camellia and pansy studies, each lilac is unique and they have not been produced in any standard run.