The sweet pea is among the recurring flower subjects in the work of JAR, the Paris maison founded by Joel Arthur Rosenthal in 1977 at 7 Place Vendôme. The sapphire sweet pea pieces, executed across the full coloured-sapphire palette in delicate pavé, are particularly admired examples of the maison's command of tonal gradation and its talent for treating subjects of small scale and complex geometry.

The Subject

The sweet pea has a distinctive flower geometry consisting of a curved upper banner petal and two folded keel petals beneath, with delicate tendril-like elements in the foliage. The flower comes naturally in a wide spectrum of colours from pure white through pink, mauve, violet and deep purple to bicolour combinations, which makes it especially well suited to a treatment built around coloured sapphire.

Construction

JAR sapphire sweet pea pieces are constructed in the maison's standard pavé manner, with a carved substrate of silver over gold and a patinated black surface so that no mounting metal is visible. The banner petal is rendered with the strongest tonal saturation at the base of the petal, gradating outward toward the curved upper edge through stones differing only by very small increments of hue. The keel petals beneath are tonally distinct, often pitched slightly cooler or warmer than the banner, so that the layered structure of the flower is rendered through colour as well as relief.

The use of fancy-coloured sapphires across the full hue range, sometimes including violet and lavender tonalities that are difficult to source, is one of the technical accomplishments of these pieces. JAR has favoured untreated coloured sapphires drawn from a tightly curated range, and the consistency of tonal gradation in the pavé surfaces depends on the maison's well-known practice of long-term stone selection prior to setting.

Auction and Exhibition Record

JAR sweet pea brooches and ear clips were included in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's 2013 retrospective Jewels by JAR. Documented examples have appeared at Christie's and Sotheby's sales, with values reflecting the strong premiums normally achieved by the maison's flower studies.