Collection SS2016: Au Pays des Oiseaux Fleurs

From our beloved Christine Henry we have a new design that's set to mesmerize the admirer by inviting her to follow the many chapters of the story and possibly get lost in the story.

Like an allegory of life itself, Au Pays des oiseaux fleurs tells of the interconnections between fauna and flora. The delicate drawing transports us to a dreamlike land of trees, flowers and birds, mingling in rich profusion. 

No two trees are the same, each unfurls scrolling arabesques, decorative forms and flowers, an open invitation to the multicoloured birds snapping twigs to build their nests among the branches, feeding on blossoms, transporting fertile seeds and pollens. 

Plants and animals blend and blur in this composition celebrating the extraordinary richness of life on Earth – the intelligence, beauty and power of nature. No single thing can thrive, it seems to say, without all the rest.

Collection SS2003: Escales Mediterranéennes

Today is not too hot, not too humid, just pleasant enough to stroll along the lake shore and savour the sight of calm waters upon which swans  look on to the sailing boats.  A perfect summer day!  This sight made me think of the "eternal" Mediterranean, a universe into itself that is both the cradle of our civilization and a vast patrimony of humanity.

Created by Christine Henry and issued in 2003, "Escales Mediterranéennes" ("Mediterranean Stopovers") is a tribute to the element that has defined civilizations - a Sea that has become at once a mosaic of colours, cultures and spirituality.   The three monotheistic religions developed around its waters.  Its shores saw the "inventions" of numbers, arithmetic, astronomy... in effect, of all science.  Here is where the great myths were born, such as the story of Atlantis, the island lost under the sea, or that of the sirens who attempted to inveigle Ulysses (the most famous hero of Antiquity) and who threw themselves into the sea and drowned.  So many tales have been recounted, in fact, that even the ancient Library of Alexandria (or its modern sister) could not boast enough shelf space to house them all.

Just to get an idea of how variegated the Mediterranean cultures are, consider only how its ever-changing colour made it so difficult to reach consensus and proved equally fascinating to mankind.  The Sea is sparkling and pink at daybreak, azure in the mid-day heat, a cloudy emerald hue near the rocky coastline, golden as the sun sets, gray or midnight black when beset by inclement weather and white foam-lashed with shades of silver when the wind whips it into a fervour.  And no sooner have we defined the colour of its waters than its mood changes and shifts to yet another place along the visible spectrum.

This post invites you to plunge head-on into this imaginary voyage, where symbols of the Roman, Greek, Turkish, Spanish and Arabic cultures are gracefully depicted among the sea's natural treasure - fish and aquatic plants.  This intermingling of elements is a close reflection of what a real explorer would be set to discover: vestiges of the Roman world in Libya, prehistory in Sardinia, Greek cities in Sicily, the Arab presence in Spain, Turkish Islam in Yugoslavia ...a diversity born out of commerce and wards.

The scarf is superb and ageless - both when displayed and when tied - thanks to the designer's painstaking rendition of the details of each graphic element and to Hermes for the magnificent colour combinations.

Collection SS2006: Chemins de Garrigue

I caught wind of the upcoming scarf designs, so as we're waiting to admire - and feel - the actual scarves in the boutiques, I thought of paying hommage to the talented artist Christine Henry, whose newest creation will be featured as part of the Fall/Winter 2011 collection (this is in addition to the "Nuées imaginaires" - "Imaginary Clouds" - from earlier this year).  


This prolific artist is recognized for her intricate designs that reflect snapshots of both ordinary and extraordinary life, illustrated in a manner that makes you feel as if you hold an entire miniature universe in your palms (or wear around your neck, for that matter).  Her "rives fertiles" ("fertile rivers"), included in Hermes' "water"-themed 2005 collection, caught my attention in a profound way, turning her into one of my favourite drawing artists.  The fascinating aspect of her work, however, is that she succeeded in growing over the years, exploring various styles (as captured on the 17 designs of hers that Hermes has featured over the years) that appear quite disparate from one another.


Today's "Chemins de garrigue" ("Paths of the shrubland") has been created in the same style - a style that infuses, in addition to dynamism, a tasteful richness and spectacular elegance into this scarf that only a handful of designs can boast.  Because the scarf's "footprint" is a square, the shape itself is static.  To compensate and infuse energy into a scarf, artists use specific techniques - "tricks" known only to craftsmen and women who've mastered the trade.  One of the more obvious techniques consists of developing the designs along the square's diagonals.  An alternative technique is Christine's approach to imagine curvy paths across the landscape, rather than straight lines.  The winding paths take the explorer on a journey of discovery, inviting you to notice all the details along the way (as opposed to straight lines, where your sight is automatically drawn towards the point terminus of the "journey" and therefore presenting you with the risk of missing everything else surrounding the path).


The inspiration behind this scarf springs from the calcareous plateaus of the Mediterranean shores - the "garrigue" - punctuated by dense thickets of kermes oak,  juniper and stunted holm oak.  Aromatic lime-tolerant shrubs such as lavender, sage, rosemary, wild thyme and Artemisia are common plants of the garrigue landscape.  Calling this shrubland home are sheep, donkeys, rabbits, reptiles and snails alike - examples of which are graciously captured on canvas.


What's interesting is that Hermes' choice of colour combinations to illustrate this design - soft blue, soft pink, rich yellow and black, to name just a few - is very similar to "Nuées imaginaires" from Spring/Summer 2011.


This scarf is not only beautiful, it is utterly elegant, promising a great many heads turning to admire both it and the person sporting it ! 

Collection SS2011: Nuées Imaginaires

Upon close inspection of all of this season's designs, this is, without a doubt, my most favourite.  Just as I have been in awe with most of Leigh Cooke's designs, I have come to appreciate, admire and adore some of this artist's beautiful creations.

Christine Henry, the creative force behind today's design, has a unique gift of rendering images with the power of carrying us into far-away lands - taking us on a voyage to the gates of an Indian palace), offering us magical glimpses into the life along mystical rivers (in "Rives fertiles"), or uncovering for us the core of our world (in "Axis mundi").  Having taken us to discover earthly scenes, this season she is elevating us - with gentleness and grace - to a heavenly place ... quite literally.  

In "Nuées imaginaires" ("Imaginary clouds"), the designer reveals for us a magic world where fantastic creatures, born out of our rich imagination, live in perfect harmony - with each other and with the world.  The creation - true to the artist's signature style - is a snapshot at a given time, a depiction that is fixed in time and space yet where the viewer can detect, indeed "feel", the energy of every scene.  

Each scene is a reflection of an individual dream whose details we can recognize even long after we opened our eyes - like a sun ray coming from a high-above window that reveals the detail of a story encaptured in the mosaique down below.  Together, the scenes make an ensemble that reveals before our eyes like a beautiful lyrical composition, an opera in which the story is captured and enriched with every area that enchants the listener and that continues to linger in the audience's mind long after the courtain has fallen.The colours of most of the scarves in this design are very vibrant and well-defined, as we experienced in her more recent creations - an element of design that makes for a very youthful scarf.  

Overall, this design renders the scarf very sophisticated, if somewhat mature in this regard - and only a person with a strong character and personality will find it appealing.

In blue, this scarf is phenomenal for the discreet orange accents (both the border as well as select details of the design).  The other aspect of this scarf that I find particularly appealing is the combination of blue and grey as its predominant colours.  Very very chic !

Collection SS2010: La Légende du Poisson Corail

This design, entitled “La Légende du poisson corail” (“the legend of the coral”) is a tribute to the very fragile universe created by corals – veritable marine oases where countless species of fish and plants find shelter from the dangers of their mysterious universe – and fertile ground to flourish.


The design features a coral reef, encircled by a prominent ring, mirroring that of a coral atoll. The richness of the surrounding universe – and that within – is represented by the colourful impressionist brush strokes, suggestive of the shimmerings of the water. At the centre, the fish, adopting camouflaged costumes to merge with the surroundings, took refuge among the corals to escape predators. Bars, streaks, diamond-shapes … mimicry blends with fantasy to create a magic world. At each of the corners of the carré, stylized flying fish symbolize the harmony between the heavens and the world below the waves.


This design strikes me for its resemblance to "De Madras à Zakynthos", despite the two different artists. The design is quite effervescent, with most of the design colours quite vibrant and contrasting, so it takes an equally powerful personality to pull it off.

Collection FW2005: Rives Fertiles

I wrote, last week, about this design,  yet this is an exceptional colour combination that deserves a separate mention. "Rives fertiles" ("fertile rivers") pays tribute to the River Nile and the countless lives it enriches as it carves its way to the Mediterranean (proof of the Egyptian reference is the pyramid in the lower right hand corner of the design.

The designer, Christine Henry, has already made her mark with many other intricate and very detailed patterns, but this one remains one of my all-time-favourite. 


Note that the style is similar to the post of two weeks ago - the same attention to detail, the same delicate drawings as in "people du vent" - yet while the former has a distinct East European folkloric motif, this one elevates beyond cultures to become a timeless masterpiece.  


It ties beautifully and the colours are simply sublime (the marine border reminds me of the deep colours of the Black Sea waters while the hues of burgundy, dark orange and pink are warm and soothing).

Collection FW2005: Rives Fertiles

The kind of scarf that not only tells a story, but is worthy of a magnificent frame and a prominent display.

Continuing the stream within the Hermes collection, "Rives Fertiles" ("Fertile Rivers") follows the course of a water stream - or perhaps of several, revealing the impact water has on the people who have access to it.  It reminds me of the river Nile, and the history lessons I used to enjoy so much in high school, when we learnt about the two harvests triggered by the unusually fertile Egyptian land "bathed" by the river Nile. This particular colour combination is quite an accomplished and enchanting visual symphony, with an air of elegance and sophistication that few scarves manage to attain.

Collection SS2009: Peuple du vent

"Peuple du vent" ("people of the wind") is another name by which the gypsies are known. This scarf pays tribute to these eternal travelers, whose legends glorify nature while recounting their magical virtues (of communicating with animals and of palm reading, to name a select few). This carre is an ode not only to their myths and beliefs, but also to their distinguished artistry and craftsmanship

As a true testament to their nature, the names by which the "people of the wind" are known describe their history, peregrinations, occupations or territorial origins - or all of the above, together. "Gypsy" comes from the Greek for "Egyptian" in an erroneous belief that these people originated in Egypt and were exiled as punishment for allegedly harboring the infant Jesus. "Tziganes" comes from another Greek word, meaning "untouchables". "Bohemians", related to their obtaining passports issued by the Bohemian king, is yet another word, as is "Lautari" (from the Romanian "lauta" meaning "mandolin", denoting their admirable musical skills), "Kokkalaris" (from the Greek "kokkala" for "bones"), "Kalderash" (from the Romanian "caldare" denoting their blacksmith craft), "Ursari" (as "showers of circus bears") or "Rotars" (from "wheels"). No matter what their names, these people are universally recognized for their distinct caravans, select craftsmanship and sought-after instrument playing artistry.

The design sports an intricate organic pattern, similar to the patterns of the Gypsy women's clothes, and has as a predominant motif the wheel, symbolic of these folks' peregrinations and fortune-telling. The scarf also depicts individuals as craftsmen and artists: male violin and accordion players, female dancers, horseback riders or circus performers are but a few of the individual elements. Equally fascinating is the representation of the legend of Sara, the Black Virgin of the "Roma" (the official name of these people since 1971). The colours in the series are all very bright, intense, unapologetic - similar to the vibrant colours of the folks' clothes. One of my favourite is the bright green, which I'll post as soon as I find a good picture of.

This scarf is a delight to wear as it ties beautifully and a great object of admiration for its own intrinsic story-telling design (albeit only for those who can wear "statement" accessories, as the pattern is quite strong and rich). The musical equivalent of this scarf would be Gheorghe Zamfir's "The Lonely Sheppard", which has invariable triggers misty eyes for me.

Collection FW2008: Aux Portes du Palais

"Aux portes du palais" ("At the palace gates") is the fruit of the designer's deep understanding of Indian culture, art and mythology.  Each detail, character, animal, plant and architectural element is deliberate and richly symbolic.  The large doors signify the threshold between the known and the unknown - two worlds richly depicted in many cultures around the world.  Fruit-laden trees bursting with flowers represent Buddha in Indian folk art and symbolize fertility. The lotus flowers - Buddha's flowers - represent spiritual blossoming.

Equally illustrated are emblematic animals, revered and present in all Indian art: the elephant (ridden by Indra, the god of storms and rain) brings peace and prosperity; the horse is the symbol of wisdom and formal beauty; the cow - a nourishing mother figure - is the very image of non-violence and the tiger represents the energy of nature...

The four dancers next to the trees narrate the legends of the gods and stories from everyday life using graceful gestures.

The corners of the scarf depict examples of the protective drawings that women paint on their homes. The frieze surrounding the scarf, in the style of Indian miniatures, rich in colourful decorations, is a tribute to the delicacy of Indian art, expressed in fabrics and temple decorations alike.

I consider this scarf another fine example of a silk painting, worthy of being framed so as to adorn someone's living room, study or even bedroom. The rich symbolism is thus preserved and the scarf continues to tell a great story, much more than when it's worn.