Art Market Magazine - Visit zone-secure.net

€82,300
Goossens, jeweller to
French couturiers
You have to pay for elegance… As shown on 25 January
at Drouot with the results (€82,300) achieved by the Paris
auction house Gros & Delettrez for some haute couture
jewellery whose value depends even more on the
quality and originality of the design than on the preciousness
of the materials. And where this little game is
concerned, the creations of Robert Goossens turn out to
be real winners. As you can see from the €22,500
obtained (for a high estimate of €250), by a piece of head
jewellery of marine inspiration he dreamed up for Yves
Saint Laurent between 1985 and 1989. At the second
sale of the Pierre Bergé/Yves Saint Laurent collection in
November 2009, a 1990 wheat ear brooch in gilt metal
and paste had fetched €16,250. Goossens also created
designs in more precious materials. On 18 February 2008,
with Debureaux Aponem at Drouot, a covered bowl in
silver gilt, rock crystal and coral - a unique piece - shot up
to €28,227 (see photo). Returning to in the famous
Berger/Saint Laurent sale, a 1990 flaming heart frame
dedicated to the couturier raised €12,500. This was in gilt
bronze, coral and hardstone. In the sale here, the price of
other creations produced for the couturier rocketed skyhigh.
€9,000 went to an open cuff bracelet of c. 1984 in
pierced gilt metal decorated with metal and mother-ofpearl
shells, highlighted with coral branches. This went
with a pair of matching earrings. €7,250, an estimate
multiplied by over ten, went to a demi-parure of c. 1980
in gilt metal from the "Homage to Braque" collection,
including a brooch and earrings featuring doves. Goossens
worked for other top couturiers, including one Coco
Chanel... Created in around 1983, a necklace consisting
of two rows of baroque pearls holding a gilt metal medallion,
imitation sapphire pâte de verre and pendants went
up to €4,750 (photo 145). Coco played a major role in the
jeweller's career after he met Gabrielle Chanel in 1953.
AUCTION RESULTS THE MAGAZINE
The following year, he contributed to the creation of
Mademoiselle's Byzantine style; in fact, she made him
one of her accredited suppliers. Initially trained by his
father, Goossens learned the art of jewellery in the workshops
of the great Paris goldsmiths and jewellers where
he was apprenticed. From 1948 onwards, he worked for
Max Boinet, who created a number of models for top
couturiers like Christian Dior and Elsa Schiaparelli. In
1950, Goossens began working directly with Balenciaga.
Through Chanel, he developed collaborations with other
leading names in fashion, notably the great Yves Saint
Laurent. Indubitably, Robert Goossens can be proud to
be known as "the jeweller of the French couturiers" - with
the bids to prove it! Sylvain Alliod
www.goossens-paris.com
W
Other prices
€9,915 Robert Goossens - (Fifties), gold necklace /pendant consisting
of six shells linked to two baroque volute branches, central gold
mounting set with a rock crystal, four claws inlaid with amethysts,
twelve oval-cut amethysts, finishing in a gold baroque pendant
ornamented with a piece of emerald-cut smoked quartz. Model of a
special commission for the Duchess of Windsor.
Paris, 8 July 2010, Lombrail-Teucquam auction house.
€3,250 Robert Goossens for Yves Saint Laurent, Haute couture,
silvered metal necklace featuring branches of coral set with paste.
Unsigned. Paris, 8 October 2012, Cornette de Saint Cyr auction
house.
€930 Robert Goossens for Chanel, pendant necklace consisting of
openwork gilt metal elements, unsigned, c.1960 (similar model in the
Duchess of Windsor collection, Sotheby's 1997. Paris, 3 November
2011, Le Brech & Associés auction house.
N° 23 I GAZETTE DROUOT INTERNATIONAL
57