The Joël Faivre Chalon Donation: An Exceptional Collection of Jewellery and Archives

It is only by comparing a modest red-covered notebook – comprising various pouches and annotated sheets of paper – with the list of jewellery donated by Françoise Faivre-Chalon to the Musée du bijou contemporain (Museum of Contemporary Jewellery) in Cagnes-sur-Mer that one can fully appreciate the scope of this exceptional, coherent new collection encompassing 109 works and archival documents tracing the career of Joël Faivre- Chalon. Like an accounting ledger, Joël Faivre-Chalon carefully recorded and described each of his creations in this notebook. Their descriptions are organised in columns. The first is by far the most important, since it contains a drawing of the jewellery or object created. The following columns collate information on the materials used, the weight, the date of production and, finally, the ‘status’ of the work – has it been sold? Given away? Stored?




This red notebook – as it has been conveniently named since it became an archive – is an exceptional documentary source for researchers and historians. Starting in 1980 and ending in 2003, it enables us to follow the rhythm of the artist’s creations, 12 from 1980 to 1982, then 97 until 1989 and another 149 until 2003, making a total of nearly 260 in 23 years of activity. This greatly facilitates their authentication, dating and characterisation. The lines also sketch out the different periods of his work, in a continuous sequence, sometimes punctuated by back-and-forth movements: the early period dominated by precious metals, the slate period, the period of modern materials such as laminate, Formica and titanium, followed by the carbon fibre period. The formal evolution is just as clearly visible, from the initial solid, geometric shapes to the hollowed-out, airy forms, right up to the clean, minimalist lines of his final creative years.
 
This document might seem somewhat dry and purely accounting-related were it not enriched by bundles of notes, sketches and drawings in Joël Faivre-Chalon’s own hand, which he kept throughout his career.

These papers cover more or less the same chronological period as the red notebook, with the exception of his apprenticeship diploma as a jeweller and his goldsmith’s certificate in jewellery, both dated 1977. They powerfully complement the list of his achievements, as they often shed light on both the context of their creation and the process used by the artist.


 
The most significant example of this fruitful correspondence between the archive and the jewellery is undoubtedly the one that provides information on the genesis of the ‘Château d’eau’ (‘Water Tower’) brooches designed between 1994 and 1996 as part of a project initiated by the Corpus group on the theme Expérimenter le bijou: les autres et nous (Experimenting with Jewellery: Others and Ourselves). In two undated notes – one handwritten, the other typed – relating to this particularly prolific series, Joël Faivre-Chalon describes all the stages of the project in detail. The starting point was the observation of the ‘growing importance’ of his teaching life in his daily routine, ‘in terms of time and personal investment’, as well as the formulation of the hypothesis of ‘possible influences or interactions’ on his ‘personal research work’. With this in mind, determined to put the teaching methods he used at the Ateliers de Fontblanche in Nîmes to the test, he imposed constraints on himself in terms of time, materials and techniques, justifying his choice of architectural theme by the beauty of water towers and his desire ‘to preserve the monumental spirit of this architecture in a small-scale object with its constraints of size, weight and adaptation to the body’.
 
While the first pieces produced complied with the ‘specifications’ set out, the following ones were created according to the artist’s ‘usual rhythm’, which he defined immediately afterwards as ‘reworking the pieces in several stages, researching new ways of attaching them to clothing, taking great care with the finishing touches, and lengthy negotiations on the proportions and shapes chosen’. In hindsight, his account, enriched with broader reflections, could be read as a manifesto of his thinking and his art, which he enjoyed challenging: ‘Jewellery forces us to think about the other person in terms of their body, their clothes, their daily life. It must follow its owner, reflect their personality and moods while remaining unobtrusive with no discomfort due to weight or size, no aggression (no sharp surfaces, etc.)’ (source: Working notes on the theme for reflection given by Corpus: ‘Experimenting with Jewellery, Others and Ourselves’, 1996).
Joël Faivre-Chalon. Brooch: Untilted object with brooches, 1986
Rectangular support: titanium, Plexiglas®, nylon, stainless steel, with three squares, including one central pin.
Panels: transparent and textured Plexiglas®, printed paper.
30 × 9.8 × 10 cm.
Photo by: Frédéric Le Quéré.
Part of: Museum of Contemporary Jewellery. Solidor Art Space.


Other documents attest to Joël Faivre-Chalon’s desire to explain his choices and share his artistic universe. This is the case with a summary presentation of his work that he wrote for the catalogue of the First Jewellery Biennial in Paris in 1987: ‘My production has changed in recent years with the use of metals that are unusual in jewellery (titanium in particular) and the addition of colour (through the anodisation of these metals or laminates). Until then, metals and precious stones were my basic materials. The lightness, flexibility, elasticity and colouring possibilities of these new materials have opened up a vast field of research in which I can satisfy my taste for simple graphics, attention to detail (even hidden) and the most perfect possible finishing. I create one-of-a-kind models, jewellery and sculptures (usually including a removable piece of jewellery) and, more recently, small series of jewellery based on either a geometric shape, a system (tension, mobility) or a graphic theme (grids, wire mesh, etc.). While I am very curious and drawn to new technologies as well as new materials, composites and others, I sometimes regret that they are still too often little known and difficult to obtain.’


In addition to these clearly written texts, the archives contain numerous drawings and sketches that reveal Joël Faivre-Chalon’s need to first sketch out a future piece of jewellery on paper: whether it be a part, a detail, a fastening mechanism, a search for the right material, or a desired finish. At times accompanied by just a few words, at others by very precise recommendations, these quick or meticulous graphic representations – echoing the prototypes and jewellery in the donation – provide a glimpse of the techniques used by the artist. One prime example is a loose sheet of paper on which he describes, complete with sketches and verbs, all the steps involved in obtaining a repoussé effect.


Joël Faivre-Chalon. Brooch: Untitled, 1988
Formica, ColorCore®, stainless steel, titanium. 13 × 9 × 4 cm.
Part of: Museum of Contemporary Jewellery. Solidor Art Space.


The jewellery entrusted to the Musée du bijou contemporain constituted Joël Faivre-Chalon’s workshop collection – that is, the pieces he had kept for himself. By its very nature, this collection cannot be exhaustive, as some pieces of jewellery were sold and others given away. However, these 109 pieces of jewellery – the oldest being a brooch made of 750 gold, 925 silver and fire opal dating from the early 1980s and the most recent a series of silver rings from 2002 – provide a fairly accurate overview of his career. All the above-mentioned periods and all the materials with which he experimented are represented.

Above and beyond the intrinsic value of each piece, their uniqueness and originality, it is the remarkable overall complementarity of the creations and the archives that makes this exceptional collection so powerful, reflecting a body of work and a career dedicated to the art of contemporary jewellery.

 

About the author

With a dual background in communication and art at the Villa Arson in Nice, Myriam Theveniaud is now a curatorial assistant at the Contemporary Jewelry Museum. There, she organizes exhibitions in collaboration with various curators and highlights the permanent collection through different themes each year. She also oversees the city's precious collection of contemporary jewelry, contributing to the preservation and promotion of this heritage, which features over 400 pieces.
 


Emeric Pinkowicz, a heritage curator, has directed the museum service of Cagnes-sur-Mer since 2017. At the helm of three institutions with unique identities—the Renoir Museum, the Grimaldi Castle-Museum, and the Contemporary Jewelry Museum—he develops programming that combines scientific rigor with accessibility for all audiences. Although the artistic worlds differ, the same ambition guides his work: to make the museum a place of discovery, sharing, and emotion. He is particularly committed to making artworks and knowledge accessible to as many people as possible, prioritizing active outreach and a diverse range of approaches to connect with each artistic universe.

Photo by Philippe Duchene.