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A RARE AND COLLECTIBLE GOLD 'CENTAURE PHALLIQUE' BROOCH, BY PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973)

A rare 22K gold brooch, after the design created for Jacqueline Roque, conceived circa 1960,...

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A RARE AND COLLECTIBLE GOLD 'CENTAURE PHALLIQUE' BROOCH, BY PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973)

A rare 22K gold brooch, after the design created for Jacqueline Roque, conceived circa 1960, stamped with the artist's signature, incised 'E. AUT 1/2', with the Francois and Pierre Hugo reference numbered '1521' and '3743', stamped with Francois Hugo's hallmark, published by Ateliers Hugo in 2012, within its original wooden fitted case, length 5.7cm, width  4.4cm

For a comparable sculptural design by Pablo Picasso, see Hugo, P. and Siaud, C. (2001) Bijoux d'artistes. Artist’s Jewels, Hommage à Francois Hugo, p. 162

A steady pattern from the inauguration of François Hugos’ atelier, one of his first “bijou d’artiste” collaborations was made with Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. Arguably the most important figure of the 20th century in terms of art and art movements, Picasso was best known for his painting and sculpture. His integral part in the development of Cubism and Surrealism have been crucial to evolution of modern art. Yet Picasso’s creative pursuits were not limited to solely these media and his versatility as an artist is evident in how he turned his hand to alternative decorative arts such as printmaking, pottery and jewellery design throughout his lifetime.

In creating jewellery pieces, Picasso was particularly inspired by the female muses in his life. He made necklaces worked from shells, engraved stone amulets for his lover Dora Maar throughout the 1930s, focused on ceramic pendants, brooches and necklaces for Françoise Gilot in the late 1940s and later on, made a large amount of jewellery for his second wife and final muse Jacqueline Rocque. However, his jewellery moved to new heights upon meeting goldsmith Francois Hugo in the mid-1950s. Living in his villa, La Californie’ in Cannes in 1957, Picasso struck up a friendship with Hugo, great-grandson of the eminent French writer Victor Hugo. The two moved in similar circles and were both members of Parisian artistic group known as “Boeuf sur la toit”, which championed modernist artistic movements. Hugo worked for the painter for one or two years before the pair ventured into a collaboration. Always the perfectionist, Picasso had a clear vision of the final product, yet wholly trusted Hugo’s skill and wealth of experience in executing his demands. The partnership which developed between Picasso and Hugo had a huge impact on the latter’s working and personal life, and shortly after the bourgeoning of their friendship, Hugo moved to Aix-en-Provence in the south of France in order to be nearer Picasso.

Picasso had always harnessed a keen admiration for gold and became mesmerised by the metalworking process taking place in Hugo’s goldsmithing atelier. Many works were crafted using a specific type of the repoussé technique invented by François and aided by his son Pierre. Derived from the ancient methods of jewellery-making, Francois revolutionised the process of goldsmithing, inventing the technique of “repoussé-ciselé”. This highly skilled and intricate method of crafting is completed by manufacturing bronze moulds which are then used with 23 karat gold to carry out the process. He also crafted and adapted specific tools to make sure the metal could withstand long hours of repoussage. It was these inventions which captivated Picasso and they have been used at the Ateliers Hugo ever since. Over the course of two decades, the two artists partnered to design and create exquisite jewellery pieces, as Picasso moved to crafting pieces in clay to working in gold upon the discovery of Hugo’s techniques. The pieces were designed by Picasso initially in ceramic and then cast in gold by Hugo at a later date. Much of the subject matter leant towards the portrayal of animal figures, including bulls, fish and centaurs and the jewellery he created was permeated by the themes and interests also seen in Picasso’s painting of this time.

The relationship Picasso had to the jewellery he created was one which was fiercely personal. He never produced in large quantities and refused to exhibit his creations. Instead, they were reserved for the people with whom he was most intimate and were normally given as gifts and treasured by the receiver or else kept for Picasso himself. It was only in 1965 that Picasso permitted the fruits of his collaborations with Hugo to be public in any way. A small number of pieces were made and sold to a limited circle of connoisseurs and friends, whilst some were discretely sold through an elite Parisian gallery, Le Point Cardinal. In 1967, a select number of objects were exhibited in Hugo’s Atelier.

Picasso’s interest in gold followed him for the rest of his life and his collaborations with Hugo continued until his death in 1973. The duo also experimented in making pieces outside the realm of gold and created sculptural works, beautiful vases and plates, medallions and compotiers and some pieces in silver. The close tie between Atelier Hugo and Pablo Picasso set the precedence for a host of successful collaborations between globally acclaimed artists and the master-craftsmen of the goldsmithing studio, who were inspired by Picasso and Hugos’ jewellery to work with the goldsmith’s atelier.

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Jewellery made by artists is a rarity. This is not simply down to the fact that there have been only a select number of painters and sculptors who have managed to master the skill involved with making jewellery, but more so because the fruits of their work remain largely buried in private collections. Artist’s jewellery may be given as a gift to a lover, passed down as a family heirloom, or simply kept by the artist themselves. Jewellery of this kind is therefore imbued with a deeply personal nature which is integral to the creative process. The term ‘art jewellery’ itself signifies that the work is handmade and unique. Never mass produced, such jewellery is rather the result of a collaboration between the artist and a jeweller who is trained in the field, or the sole efforts of the artist to step outside his or her own métier to embrace an entirely different world. As with any creative endeavour, the jewellery becomes an extension of the artist’s wider body of work and offers an insight into a realm of design aside from painting or sculpture. The pieces in this sale offer just that and provide us with a glimpse into the intricate workings and personal motivations of three prolific early 20th century artists – Jean Cocteau, André Derain and Pablo Picasso. All three worked under the helm of goldsmith and master-craftsman François Hugo, who provided them with the tools to enable their artistic vision to flourish in the world of jewellery-making.

 

The great-grandson of the eminent writer Victor Hugo and son of painter Georges Hugo, François Hugo’s well-established lineage boasts a host of widely celebrated French cultural figures. François was born in Rovezzano, Italy, in 1899, and trained as an engineer in his early years before entering the creative field by trying his hand at sculpture and painting. He then opened his own workshop in Paris in 1934, where he worked as a silver and goldsmith from 1936 onwards. Throughout the Second World War and following into the late 40s and 50s, François Hugo designed and created buttons from non-precious metals and enamel for fashion houses including Dior, Chanel, Givenchy and Lanvin. His first attempt at creating jewellery had in fact come before the War, in the form of a brief and experimental collaboration with his close friend Andre Derain, but it wasn’t until later that he fully dedicated himself to perfecting the craft of silver and goldsmithing.

Francois Hugo was responsible for some of the most important collaborations in precious metals of the twentieth century. Since the 1950s, Ateliers Hugo have famously collaborated with some of the world’s greatest artists and sparked a movement of ‘Bijoux d’Artistes’. Initially, all the artists who Hugo worked with were long-time friends, and included the likes of Max Ernst, Jean Arp, Jean Cocteau, Andre Derain, Dorothea Tanning and Pablo Picasso amongst others. Hugo ingeniously proposed to them to make reduced versions of their works which would be crafted in his workshop and could serve as wearable jewellery. Over sixty-five years later, François’ 32-year-old grandson Nicolas now runs the family business, following in his father and grandfather’s footsteps as the third generation of Ateliers Hugo to create intricate treasures and develop new collections with contemporary artists at their goldsmith workshop in the South of France. The 65th anniversary of Ateliers Hugo was celebrated in 2020 and marked by new collaborations, including one with American artist Josh Sperling, released in April of this year.

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