Cartier, the esteemed French luxury goods company was founded in Paris in 1847 by Louis-François Cartier. Under the stewardship of his son Alfred and later his grandsons Louis, Pierre and Jacques that the brand became a global phenomenon.
For the first 60 years, the company focussed on watches, clocks and fine jewellery. But in 1910 they began producing the first Cartier fountain pens. Based on designs that had been in the archives since the 1860s, the first pens helped define the art deco style that would come to prominence in the 1920s.
This is what defines Cartier as a leading luxury brand and why Cartier pens are the pinnacle of contemporary sophistication. Where Cartier deigns to tread, the wider design world follows. In the 1960s Cartier designer, Pierre Lefebvre predicted the shift to clean lines and elegant minimalism.
Creating the first Les Must de Cartier gold-plated pens and matching lighters with simple etched lines and understated embellishments, he created a pen that is still an essential part of any connoisseur’s collection to this day. Now an icon of mid-century modern design his clean aesthetic has gone on to inform the everyday elegance of refined writing instruments for decades.
Cartier’s designs are always ahead of their time. Is this because the designers can peer into the future or because the most influential tastemakers take inspiration from the heritage brand? Probably the latter as the company has always sought to appeal to the most discerning creative minds of our times.
An example of how Cartier fuses art, collectibility and exquisite design to appeal to the most influential tastemakers is in their Exceptional Pen Series. The 21st century saw the company celebrate icons of Chinese culture: the panther, tiger and dragon with a collection of pens that encapsulated fine sculptural art and flawless function. The highlight of the collection was the Dragon Décor limited edition consisting of just eight numbered pens. With an 18-karat yellow gold body and black stripe lacquer detailing, the pen retails at £157,000.
The star of the show is the burgundy red lacquer cap which features a blue lacquer cloud décor and a stunning three-dimensional 18-karat gold sculpted dragon. Perched on the pen lid the dragon is brought to dazzling life with six emeralds and 475 pavé diamonds. If unfettered luxury and maximalism are on your wish list then, with the Dragon Décor limited edition, Cartier delivers all the perfection you could ever want.
From the everyday minimalism of the 1960s to the luxury maximalism of the 2020s, Cartier is as much a reflection of our era. Moreover, they are just as insightful as a predictor of the direction we are going. Inhabiting the style of the time and being ahead of the curve is the very definition of fashionable sophistication.
Cartier succeeds in always being in the moment while exuding timelessness. This is a rare skill in the luxury market and one that can only be achieved by Cartier, an iconic company of enduring sophistication.
