Van Cleef & Arpels' latest Lacquered Butterfly clips draw on the Tsuzumi drum and traditional Japanese toys — each a one-of-a-kind High Jewellery creation.
The Case in Brief
- Debuted as the latest chapter of a Franco-Japanese programme running since 2004, the Tsuzumi-edition Lacquered Butterfly clips translate the geometric cord-binding motifs of the traditional Japanese hourglass drum into urushi lacquer and maki-e on mother-of-pearl wings.
- Crafted across two countries: gold, diamonds, and mother-of-pearl completed in France; lacquer decoration applied by master artist Junichi Hakose in Wajima City, Japan.
- Four Japanese techniques used: urushi, maki-e (sprinkled metal powder), raden (mother-of-pearl inlay), and rankaku (crushed eggshell).
- Each piece is one-of-a-kind — its specific pattern, colour balance, and textural detail can never be precisely replicated.
A Collaboration Born in 2004
Van Cleef & Arpels has maintained a presence in Japan since 1973, but the Lacquered Butterflies programme opened a different kind of exchange. In 2004, the Maison extended what amounted to a creative carte blanche to Hakose, whose workshop practises Wajima-nuri — a lacquer tradition native to the Wajima region of Ishikawa Prefecture. Given complete freedom over the decorative designs, he has since produced butterflies referencing buttercups (the Kikumakie clip), cherry blossoms (the Sakura model), Japanese irises (the Hanashobu butterfly), and motifs drawn from the seasons and ceremonial life of Japan. Twenty years on, the programme is one of the longest-running artist collaborations in High Jewellery.
The Making of Each Butterfly
Parisian artisans complete the gold butterfly clip first — body and antennae set with diamonds, wings fitted with luminous white mother-of-pearl — to the point at which it could already be sold as a finished French creation. Only then does the jewel travel to Wajima City. There, Hakose’s team layers urushi lacquer (a natural resin with more than 9,000 years of use in Japan), applies maki-e by sprinkling fine gold or silver powder onto wet lacquer, inlays raden mother-of-pearl slivers for iridescent accents, and presses rankaku crushed eggshell into the surface to build a crackled, mosaic-like texture. Hakose himself has noted the different ways Europeans and Japanese perceive the finished surface: “Europeans traditionally see the lacquer from a frontal perspective. Japanese people will also tilt the lacquer to seek the depths and subtleties created by the play between light and materials.”
The Tsuzumi as Visual Source
The Tsuzumi is an hourglass-shaped hand drum — its silk cord bindings and lacquered, often painted body making it as much a visual object as a musical instrument. In Noh and Kabuki theatre, its sharp, resonant beats anchor the dramatic rhythm. For this edition, the drum’s geometric cord-binding patterns, circles, and stripes are rendered across the mother-of-pearl ground in maki-e and urushi, accompanied by motifs drawn from traditional Japanese folk toys (mingei) whose bright, joyful forms have populated Japanese domestic life for centuries. The pairing is characteristically precise: a musical instrument whose visual grammar transfers, with no loss of clarity, into the language of lacquer art.
Where This Edition Sits in the Programme
In January 2024, Van Cleef & Arpels marked the collaboration’s twentieth year with an exhibition — “Van Cleef & Arpels and Japan: an artistic encounter” — at 20 Place Vendôme, displaying butterflies across two decades alongside archival material tracing the Maison’s relationship with Japanese art since the 1920s. The Tsuzumi-inspired butterflies follow that retrospective as the programme’s next chapter, available on request through Van Cleef & Arpels directly. For Gulf collectors drawn to one-of-a-kind High Jewellery with a verifiable cultural and craft lineage, pieces of this kind rarely surface through conventional retail channels — direct enquiry to the Maison is the appropriate route.
| Case material | Yellow and white gold |
| Dial / surface | Mother-of-pearl with Japanese lacquer (urushi) decoration |
| Availability | On request from the maison or an authorised GCC retailer |
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Frequently Asked Questions
What materials are used in the Van Cleef & Arpels Lacquered Butterfly clips?
Each clip is crafted in yellow and white gold, set with diamonds, and fitted with white mother-of-pearl wings. The lacquer decoration — applied by master artist Junichi Hakose in Wajima City, Japan — uses urushi lacquer, maki-e gold and silver powder, raden mother-of-pearl inlay, and rankaku crushed eggshell.
Who creates the lacquer decoration on the Van Cleef & Arpels Lacquered Butterflies?
Junichi Hakose, a master lacquer artist based in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, has decorated every Lacquered Butterfly since the programme began in 2004. His workshop practises Wajima-nuri, a lacquer tradition unique to that region.
Is the Van Cleef & Arpels Lacquered Butterfly available in the GCC?
Each Lacquered Butterfly is a one-of-a-kind creation. Availability in the Gulf can be explored directly through Van Cleef & Arpels at vancleefarpels.com or on request from an authorised GCC retailer.
What is the Tsuzumi, and why did Van Cleef & Arpels choose it for this edition?
The Tsuzumi is a traditional Japanese hourglass-shaped hand drum used in Noh and Kabuki theatre. Its geometric cord-binding motifs and decorated lacquered body translate naturally into the maki-e and urushi vocabulary Hakose applies to each butterfly's wings.
How long has Van Cleef & Arpels collaborated with Japan on the Lacquered Butterflies?
The Lacquered Butterflies programme launched in 2004, building on the Maison's relationship with Japan that dates to the opening of its first Japanese boutique in 1973. In January 2024, Van Cleef & Arpels marked the partnership's twentieth year with a dedicated exhibition at 20 Place Vendôme in Paris.
