Created in France circa 1970 by Fred Paris, this bracelet and ring form a particularly graphic suite in 18k yellow gold, worked in alternating fields of deep blue and vivid green basse-taille enamel. In this traditional enameling technique, the underlying metal is engraved or otherwise worked in relief before being covered with translucent enamel, allowing the pattern beneath to remain visible through the color and giving the surface a subtle sense of depth and luminosity. The bracelet arranges its rectangular panels in a repeating architectural rhythm, while the ring translates the same palette into a more concentrated geometric composition, its raised central form surrounded by triangular divisions of blue and green.
The sophisticated enamel work feels particularly suited to Fred, the Parisian house founded by Fred Samuel on Rue Royale in 1936. Samuel came from a family of gemstone dealers and trained in pearls and precious stones before establishing his own Maison; that longstanding fascination with strong color and graphic form gives this 1970s suite a natural place within Fred's design vocabulary. Together, the pieces have the assured scale and saturated palette of the period, with the warmth of yellow gold acting as a fine framework around each enamel surface.
A jewel in which geometry gives color its structure, and enamel gives gold another kind of light.
