Antarctic landscapes inspire Monique Péan’s new Atelier collection
'I want to create beautiful objects without having a negative impact on the earth,' Monique Péan explains in the office boardroom of Adjaye Associates, where her remarkable new Atelier collection is laid like a glittering feast across the table.
This eco-friendly philosophy permeates her practice, from the recycled materials she chooses and the local artisans she employs in New York City, to her outreach programme that helps to build clean water wells across Africa. In return for environmental consciousness, it seems the earth repays her with an abundance of inspiration. Péan travels extensively to remote locations, most recently Antarctica, searching for naturally occurring phenomena (shapes, erosions, colours and textures) that she can artfully replicate in her designs.
The natural world also appears throughout Péan's collection in a very literal sense, through fossilised dinosaur bones. 'They really are like nature's paintings,' she says, pointing to a bold necklace featuring a large, highly-polished fossilised disc. The deep grey colouring is flecked with moments of white, telling an ancient story in an animated, highly contemporary way.
Alongside these, Atelier sees a more focused emphasis on diamonds than previous collections, inspired by the icy, arid landscapes seen on her travels. Hexagon, trillion, waterfall and rose cuts are favoured, contrasting the organic, rough-edged fossils.
Whether raw or refined, each stone is held by a structural, architectural framework. 'I'm interested in shadows and the interaction between positive and negative spaces,' Péan offers. This spatial awareness is crucial to the collection. Theatric, arched ring settings hold the industrial diamonds in suspense. Precise lines of antique pavé diamonds pause mid-way across the wrist on slim silver bangles. Angular shapes gently touch and overlap, creating geometric puzzles at the end of each earring.
Rather than fighting each other, the natural and manmade elements form a double act, proving that both forces can coexist quite happily – if treated with as much care and creativity as Péan applies.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit Monique Péan’s website
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Elly Parsons is the Digital Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees Wallpaper.com and its social platforms. She has been with the brand since 2015 in various roles, spending time as digital writer – specialising in art, technology and contemporary culture – and as deputy digital editor. She was shortlisted for a PPA Award in 2017, has written extensively for many publications, and has contributed to three books. She is a guest lecturer in digital journalism at Goldsmiths University, London, where she also holds a masters degree in creative writing. Now, her main areas of expertise include content strategy, audience engagement, and social media.
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