Cartier 1899–1949: The Journey of a Style

An exhibition catalogue covering the pivotal first half-century of Cartier's modern identity, from 1899 — the year Louis Cartier effectively took over the direction of the house's design — through to 1949. The period encompasses the transition from the Belle Époque through the Art Deco years and on to the post-war recovery, and covers the full span of what many consider Cartier's most significant creative output.

The presence of Judy Rudoe among the contributors gives the catalogue direct continuity with her 1997 British Museum catalogue, which covered 1900–1939. The 2007 publication extends the frame slightly earlier and later while sharing some of the same scholarly apparatus and attention to individual pieces and their commission histories.

What It Covers

The stylistic evolution of Cartier's jewellery and objects across the first half of the twentieth century, with particular attention to the neoclassical foundations of the early period, the introduction of platinum, the influence of Eastern design sources, and the Art Deco output of the 1920s and 1930s. The fifty-year frame allows the catalogue to situate individual design decisions within a longer trajectory than the narrower Rudoe exhibition permitted.

Exhibition Venue

The exhibition was held at the Museu Calouste Gulbenkian in Lisbon in 2007, bringing together 230 jewels, watches, and personal objects from the Cartier Collection alongside Cartier pieces from Calouste Gulbenkian's own acquisitions. The exhibition also included original Cartier drawings, some associated with the collector, along with moulds and archival documents.

Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian (1869-1955), the Armenian-British oil magnate known as "Mr Five Percent", assembled a collection of decorative arts that included Cartier works. His will established the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, and the collection was installed in the museum in Lisbon, which opened in 1969. The 2007 exhibition marked the 50th anniversary of the Foundation.

Cited In

Referenced in glossary entries on Belle Époque, Art Deco, Garland Style, Platinum, Louis Cartier, and Paris Exposition 1925.