Graff’s Second Boutique in Paris Showcases ‘Trophy’ Jewels Alongside Works of Contemporary Art

At the anteroom of the new Graff boutique in Paris, a sinuous
bronze sets the tone for the art-filled space inside.

The sculpture, titled Torse Grebe, is the work of Jean
Arp and illustrates a pivotal shift by the French-German artist
towards abstraction in the late 1950s. It also symbolizes the
lifelong passion for art that has made Laurence Graff, the founder
of the family-owned jewelry company, an important art
collector.

“The Arp piece is from the private collection of Mr. Graff, and
all the art in this boutique reflects his taste,” a Graff
spokesperson said on a recent tour of the new store.

The boutique, which opened in April, is Graff’s second in Paris,
and it occupies one of the most covetable spots of the city’s
luxury shopping district. Located at 237 Rue Saint-Honoré, on the
corner of Rue de Castiglione, it is adjacent to the ever-trendy
Hôtel Costes and steps from the famed Place Vendôme. If high
fashion were on a collision course with high jewelry, this is where
you would expect the two to meet.

Just three years ago, Graff opened its first boutique at 17
Place Vendôme, next to the Ritz hotel. That space is now under
renovation, to resume business in the fall. So why open a second
boutique just 800 feet away? “The clientele is not the same,” the
Graff spokesperson explained.

Like Graff, a number of high-jewelry houses on the Place Vendôme
have embarked on extensive renovation projects, many of them
intended to offer their clientele new immersive experiences of
luxury in a refreshed setting with modern elegance. Boucheron,
whose historic store reopened last winter after nearly two years of
renovation, now offers a private suite with butler service from the
Ritz in addition to its shopping salons. A few steps down from
Boucheron, Chaumet’s mansion and Van Cleef & Arpels’s boutique are
also closed for renovation.

Now, with 3,700 square feet of exhibition space, Graff’s new
boutique has become the jeweler’s biggest flagship, undoubtedly a
statement about the significance of a visible presence in the
Parisian luxury market for the purveyor of some of the world’s most
important stones.

Designed by the New York-based architect Peter Marino, the
boutique boasts a main salon and three private reception areas, two
of which are devoted to bridal offerings and high jewelry,
respectively, while the third is reserved for VIP clients.

The main salon is lined with mirrors—including a pair by the
French artist Roland Mellan—and doubles as the store’s exhibition
space. It is unofficially called the “Galerie des Glaces,” a
reference to the hall of mirrors at the Palace of Versailles that
Louis XIV would traverse daily to go from his royal apartments to
his private chapel.

Double-height ceilings provide ample space for bespoke
chandeliers, notably the bronze-and-glass piece by the New
York-based artist Thaddeus Wolfe, known for his glass sculptures
and light fixtures that suggest fantastical structures.

The bridal salon, meanwhile, is a one-stop shopping destination
showcasing the full range of the jeweler’s pre-wedding
selection—which, for a diamond specialist, is not negligible—under
a geodesic ceiling.

In the VIP salon, virginal white gives way to cool aquatic
colors on the lacquered canvas walls. There, Marino’s own bronze
chest, Tall Dragon Scale Box, is a work of exquisite craftsmanship
that straddles the line between art and design, and was first
exhibited two years ago at the Gagosian gallery in London.

Behind a set of double doors, the high-jewelry salon is where
Graff’s one-of-a-kind creations may be viewed. Above a
stainless-steel table by Juan and Paloma Garrido, the
brother-and-sister heirs of the celebrated Spanish silversmith
Damián Garrido, hangs a portrait of Laurence Graff made entirely of
diamonds—a photograph from the Brazilian-born artist Vik Muniz’s
“Pictures of Diamonds” series.

But hands down the most unexpected feature of the boutique is
its cabinet of curiosities, an update on the rooms
popularized in the 16^th century where erudite
European collectors would display their exotic objects. Graff’s
version, aptly called the “Treasury,” is designed to showcase a
rotating selection of the rarest—and most precious—stones from
Laurence Graff’s private safe.

Many of those trophy gems have deservedly made headlines over
the years since 1960, when Graff founded his company. Some of the
most celebrated include the 118-carat heart-shaped Graff Venus, the
603-carat Lesotho Promise, the 118.08-carat yellow Delaire Sunrise,
the 299-carat Golden Empress, and also the Wittelsbach-Graff, the
Graff Perfection, and the Graff Pink.

Another impressive recent entrant to the collection dates back
two years, when Graff purchased the Lesedi La Rona for a reported
$53 million. An awe-inspiring rock weighing 1,109 carats, it
was one of the largest rough diamonds ever found, and was cut into
67 smaller stones. The last cut was presented this past spring in
the shape of a square emerald-cut 302.37-carat, D-flawless diamond
named the Graff Lesedi La Rona.

“You are not claustrophobic, I hope?” asked the spokesperson as
she led the way into the room.

Lined from floor to ceiling with iridescent dark-green peacock
feathers, each positioned by hand by an artisan feather-maker, the
windowless chamber is pitch-black inside. A tiny spotlight comes on
upon opening any of the three showcases in the wall; one displays a
replica of the original Lesedi La Rona in rough form, while the
others both feature a real gem from Graff’s private collection.
Which other treasures will tour through the boutique’s gallery
remains unknown, for now.

Overall, a sense of serenity emanates from the new boutique,
thanks to the choice of muted pastels and tactile surfaces, despite
it being filled with eye-catching art and imposing design pieces.
Many decorative details will likely go unnoticed by visitors
dazzled by the impressive Graff jewelry dripping with precious
stones, with few detecting, for instance, the delicate shape of
water lilies in the folds of velvet drapes in the high-jewelry
salon.

“The inspiration for that design came from Impressionist art,”
said the Graff spokesperson. “The idea was to evoke the shapes and
organic color combinations of Claude Monet’s Water
Lilies.”

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