The word Polymorph reminds me, mainly, of a shapeshifting alien life-form that marauded through a 1989 episode of Red Dwarf, although I doubt a BBC science fiction sitcom was the source of inspiration behind jewellery from the esteemed house of Cartier. That said, this bracelet and ring which each borrow the name do seem a little alien, too, their fluted ‘exoskeletons’ of rose gold studded with unexpected gemstones like chalcedonies, citrines, rutile quartz and spessartite garnets. ‘Polymorph’ comes from the Greek, for ‘many formed’, and they appear here as part of a wider Cartier collection titled Libre – Free – denoting jewellery and watches that are unexpectedly pliant and, sometimes, transformable, twisting around on the body and within the pieces themselves, to shift and reconsider their shapes. Their alien-ness isn’t just superficial – breaking with jewellery conventions, instead of the traditional flat setting, here stones are unusually angled to face up, to catch the eye and the light. The central idea behind both is the shift of colour in the sunrise, hence the myriad of jewels of varied colours, creating a landscape of gold and gemstones that give the impression of shifting, and constantly changing. Morphing, indeed.
The Cartier Libre Polymorph bracelet chalcedony is available to buy now.
