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ROMANTIC REVERIE A RARE DIAMOND: DISCOVERY TO DESIGN LANDSCAPING MAGIC LUXURY TOKYO THE SHARP CUTS OF LUCIO FONTANA AFRICAN DREAMS

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Cover photography David Slijper Styling Hannah Teare On the cover Radiant cut yellow diamond earrings set with round diamonds (Diamonds 52.99cts). Multishape diamond cuff set with a 38.03ct yellow pear shape diamond (Diamonds 139.09cts). 35.31ct Fancy Intense Yellow radiant cut diamond ring. 43.09ct Cushion cut diamond ring. Dress by Rachel Gilbert

CoRBIS; RICHARD FoSTER; MICKY HoYLE; GRAEME MoNTGoMERY; DAvID SLIJPER

Published for Graff by Show Media Ltd 1-2 Ravey Street, London EC2A 4QP +44 (0) 20 3222 0101; www.showmedia.net Editor Joanne Glasbey Creative Director Ian Pendleton Art Director Dominic Bell Managing Editor Lucy Teasdale Chief Copy Editor Chris Madigan Deputy Chief Copy Editor Gill Wing Picture Editor Juliette Hedoin Managing Director Peter Howarth For Graff Katherine Roach, Joanne Hill, Lily Liebel, Adam Norton, Jessica Lansley, Charlotte Dauphin, Holly Howe, Guy Chambers, Nadia Kassas, Louise de Rothschild Advertising Penny Weatherall, Joanne Hill and Katherine Roach at Graff; +44 (0)20 7584 8571; graffiti@graffdiamonds.com Colour reproduction by FMG; www.wearefmg.com Printing by Taylor Bloxham; www.taylorbloxham.co.uk

CONTENTS

18 A STAr IS bOrN Revealing the journey of an extraordinary 550ct rough diamond from its discovery at Lesotho’s Letšeng Mine to the making of heirloom jewels

40 TOKYO TEmpO Tradition meets technology in true Japanese style as Tokyo’s exclusive centres are explored, tracing the city’s luxurious heritage and astonishing present

24 CUTTING EDGE When Italian artist Lucio Fontana slashed one of his paintings with a knife in 1958, he radically changed his own work and created a new direction for art

46 NATUrE’S mIrACLE Striking and masterfully crafted jewellery showcasing bewitchingly beautiful stones in eye-catching new creations inspired by the natural world

62 HIGH TImE Combining superb design with technical brilliance, the latest timepieces in Graff’s growing watch collection are outstanding examples of haute horology

30 EXQUISITE ELEGANCE

54 bOTANICAL pArADISE The verdant gardens of the Delaire Graff Estate in South Africa are the perfect canvas for renowned horticulturalist Keith Kirsten’s creative expression

76 A WOrD WITH… Arnaud Bastien, director of Graff Diamonds, Asia, on the region’s unquenchable desire for luxury goods, and the 24-hour economy that satisfies it

Scene-stealing statement jewellery confers dazzling dream-like beauty in vivid and colourful locations, enhanced by haute-couture gowns

60 THE pEACOCK’S TALE The extraordinary brooch, created with incomprehensibly rare and unique gems, that has taken pride of place in Graff’s latest collection

raff is famous for the most exceptional diamonds in the world. We are constantly striving to find the finest stones, so we were very excited by the discovery of an extremely rare 550ct rough diamond. In this issue, Vivienne Becker traces the journey of the extraordinary stone as it makes its way from Lesotho’s Letšeng mine to be analysed and appraised, then cut and polished by Graff’s expert team. The rough yielded 28 D Flawless and Internally Flawless pear shape stones, with which Graff designers created a stunning collection of jewels. It’s well known that the brilliance of a diamond depends heavily on its individual cut, but it is for cutting of a completely different artistic nature that the visionary Italian artist Lucio Fontana is celebrated. By slashing his canvases, writes George Pendle, Fontana was manipulating the pictorial surface in search of new spaces beyond the flat – there was nothing casual about it and it represented the distillation of 60 years of unwavering inquisitiveness and unmatched technical prowess. The ultimate in technical achievement – and so much more – is distilled in Graff’s breathtaking peacock brooch, recently unveiled and showcased in these pages. Featuring an astonishingly beautiful and rare collection of coloured diamonds, the unique piece has as its centrepiece one of the rarest blue diamonds in the world. Rare planting and exuberant landscaping are some of the elements renowned horticulturalist Keith Kirsten has brought to the Delaire Graff Estate in South Africa’s Cape Winelands, where he created the gardens – the most spectacular sight, as Catriona Ross describes. Elsewhere in Africa, sowing seeds of hope is the focus of the work of the FACET Foundation. We hear moving personal stories from some of the disadvantaged people in Lesotho and Botswana who are learning, with the targeted support of the Graff Leadership Centres, to be motivated in the future so they can realise their dreams and ambitions. We rejoice in their blossoming and remind ourselves that giving back is the most precious gift – and one that must not become a rarity. I hope you enjoy this issue.

Laurence Graff Chairman of Graff Diamonds

SOCIAL DIARY

EaSt mEEtS WESt A select group of invitees attended Graff’s first event in Nanjing, China, which featured a jewellery showcase and stunning models displaying some of the house’s finest pieces. Attendees included Zhu Run-xi and her friend, with Graff’s Arnaud Bastien (5); Tang Li-ping and Sophia Wong (6); Liu Xin-chi and her friends with Justin Chen, senior sales Graff Shanghai (7)

6 11

FINE dINING Graff held a three-day event, in Xiamen, China – its first VIP venture in this location – to showcase some exquisite jewellery to a select group of guests over a series of lunches and dinners (4). Tommy Li, salon manager of Graff Hangzhou, Zhou Wan-Ru, a model, Wang Ping and Arnaud Bastien, regional director of Graff Asia (1); Cai Feng-Hui (2); and Grace and Michiko Matsumoto (3) were in attendance

IN StELLaR cOmPaNy To celebrate the opening of the new store in Hangzhou, Graff held a high-jewellery exhibition and dinner in the store’s sumptuous Peter Marino-designed dining room. Among the guests were Gao Jing Na (8); Tong Ye Lu (9); Sun Yan Qiu and Laurence Graff (10); and Zhang Wan Ru and François Graff (11)

LUck bE a Lady In December, Graff New York entertained special guests at the First Annual Poker Invitational. Attendees (16) enjoyed an evening of delicious cocktails, fabulous jewels and fantastic prizes. Among them were Rebekah Mercer and Thomas Barguirdjian (17); tournament winner Heather Sue Mercer (18); a model (19); and Omar Johnson, David Nolan and Robert Mercer (20)

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bEyONd mEaSURE VIP guests and press were invited to join Laurence and François Graff to admire exquisite high jewellery and timepieces at the grand opening of the Graff Hangzhou salon, its largest in Asia. They included Shou Shan and Wu Yan (12) and (13); a Graff model (14); and, from left to right, Xu Jun Ning, Chris Lau, sales director of Graff China, Deng Yuan, Ms Sun Yan Qiu and Li Bing Yang (15)

JEWEL PURPOSE In January, Graff Las Vegas was proud to sponsor the 14th annual Diamonds are Forever Gala benefiting the Las Vegas Philharmonic and honoring the Caesars Foundation. After silent and live auctions, guests – who included Annee Nounna, Pia Zadora and Sandy Colón Peltyn (21); Yvette and Ellis Landau (22); Karen and Morgan Cashman (23); Teresa Cookson, Dorothy Flagler and Dr Afreh Khazaee (24); and Ellie Hirschfeld and Joyce Imparato Beard (25) – were treated to a themed performance by members of the orchestra and a fashion presentation accented by stunning Graff jewels

FOR OLD TIMES’ SAKE Graff sponsored October’s San Francisco Fall Antiques Show, and held an event in store in September in celebration of the partnership, attended by Paul Pelosi, Christina de Limur and Adrianna Pope Sullivan (30); Guests enjoying the Antiques Show included Johnny and Malia Mosley (31); and Pamala and Ted Deikel (32) CREAM OF THE SCREEN For the third consecutive year, Graff sponsored the Screen Actors Guild Awards Green Room. Guests included Jeremy Wilkins; Kirk Posmantur; Henri Barguirdjian; Mr and Mrs George Schaeffer; Dolvett Quince; Giovanni Savarese; Paul, Megan and Zoe Castran (33). Eduard van Der Geest and Scott Bakula, sporting Graff/ Beats by Dr Dre ‘Million Dollar Headphones’, in the Green Room (34)

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29 CARS & COCKTAILS In December, Graff Palm Beach hosted a reception at the Breakers Resort to celebrate the 2013 Cavallino Automotive Classic. Among those stealing admiring glances at the striking automobiles on entering the Graff tent (29) – in which an exceptional selection of jewels were on display – were Martha and Richard Glasser (26); Pia and Thomas Hirschman (27); and Howard and Allison Lutnick and Henri Barguirdjian (28)

38 HIGH ROLLERS Graff co-hosted a reception to celebrate the launch of the latest Rolls-Royce showroom in Japan. Fabulous jewellery was on display (38) and among the guests, who included VIP Graff customers and Rolls-Royce owners, were Kohei Ueba, Tomie Kakishima, Kiichiro Hata and Jun Shimano (35); Kaoru Khan (36); and Hiroaki Suganuma and Kanako Suganuma (37)

michael buckner/wireimage; peter field peck; amy tierney

NEWS

isRAel's DiAmonD WeeK A success

When the first-ever US/International Diamond Week took place in Israel in March, Laurence Graff, pictured below, was a guest of honour. Mr Graff was personally escorted around the trading hall by Israel Diamond Exchange president Yair Sahar and Diamond Dealers Club of New York president Reuven Kaufman and declared the inaugural event 'an excellent idea, wellplanned and executed, with a tremendous number of people taking part'.

the PeAcocK bRooch is teFAF's PRiDe

GRAFF on the smAll scReen

Queues soon built up at the prestigious TEFAF exhibition in Maastricht, with visitors keen to catch a glimpse of the rare peacock brooch on display. The brooch features an incredible array of rare and exquisite coloured diamonds (see pages 60-61) and is one of the most unique pieces of jewellery ever created.

Author and presenter Alla Krutaya, the face of the Ukrainian TV show Laskavo prosymo and host of Russian television's Vis a Vis is just one of Graff's high-profile devotees. She wears items, including an elegant pair of White Diamond butterfly earrings and some beautiful 8ct Emerald Cut Diamond earrings, during the filming of both programmes.

the RetuRn oF the chinese GiRl Recently acquired by Laurence Graff, ‘The Chinese Girl’, by Russian-born South African Vladimir Tretchikoff is one of the most recognisable pictures in the world. Having been in a US collection since the Fifties, this iconic painting will soon be exhibited at the Delaire Graff Estate, to be enjoyed by visitors to the winery, restaurant and lodges.

seoul celebRAtes A neW stoRe

APPRentice GeoRGe Wins GolD

Graff is pleased to announce the imminent opening of its first store in South Korea. Located at the Shilla Hotel in central Seoul, bordering the 23-acre Janchungdan Park, it will showcase a striking array of diamonds and timepieces. The Shilla offers a blend of East-meets-West style, unrivalled luxury and cutting-edge technology.

Graff’s apprentice polisher, George Woodall (who was featured in the autumn/winter 2012 issue of Graffiti) has been awarded the top prize at the 2013 Goldsmiths’ Craftsmanship & Design Awards. Graff is very proud to be supporting the development of the next generation of master craftsmen.

a star is born From its origin as a miracle oF nature in lesotho, the 550ct letĹ eng star has undergone an incredible journey. recovered using state-oF-the-art mining techniques; mapped, cut and polished with mastery; then transFormed into beautiFul jewellery, this special diamond has realised its sublime potential words Vivienne Becker | photography Richard Foster | styling Sam Logan

sparkling results diamond butterfly brooch set with a 30.11ct d Flawless pear shape diamond (diamonds 86.42cts). 18ct d Flawless pear shape diamond drop earrings (diamonds 45.82cts). 10ct d Flawless pear shape diamond drop earrings (diamonds 23.63cts). 11ct d Flawless pear shape diamond drop earrings (diamonds 25.25cts). diamond flower brooch set with 11 d Flawless pear shape diamonds and three d internally Flawless pear shape diamonds, with removable flower section (diamonds 90.23cts)

huge scale Articulated trucks, left, transporting ore from the Letšeng mine’s pits, opposite, top, to the treatment plant. They say that, on average, they have to tip two of these to recover one carat, or 1,000 trucks for the 500 carat stone. One of the ‘glove boxes’, opposite, bottom, in which the final sifting of the ore takes place. In one of these, the 550ct Letšeng Star was discovered

dventure, exploration, discovery: these are, and have always been part of the romance of the diamond, part of its journey through billions of years, from the centre of the earth to a new time and a new world, to be found, at random, in some of the most ruggedly inhospitable but often sacred spots on the planet, and treasured as a miracle of nature and the ultimate possession. Despite science, geology and high-technology precision plotting and planning, the finding of an immense, immaculate diamond is always a wondrous, mystifying event – man working in tandem with nature. This is the story of the latest momentous diamond discovery, of the long and exacting, almost alchemical process of its transformation from a massive rough crystal first into a galaxy of exceptional Graff diamonds, perfection in a world of chaos, and finally into exquisite Graff jewels. It is a tale of modern diamond romance. It follows the

Four oF the Five largest white diamonds recovered this century have come From letšeng. all Four have been cut and polished by graFF diamonds

journey of a stone of exceptional magnificence and rarity from its dark origins, hidden some 155m underground, to scintillating sophistication and light-filled brilliance. From raw to refined. Truly, the light at the end of the tunnel. The Letšeng Star was recovered on 19 August 2011 at Gem Diamonds’ Letšeng Mine, in Lesotho, the tiny mountain kingdom landlocked by South Africa. At 550 carats, of D colour, and type IIA, the purest chemically of all diamonds and the rarest, this extraordinary rough is ranked today as the 14th largest white gem diamond on record; the fourth diamond of major historical significance to be found at Letšeng since 2006. The Letšeng Mine – the highest diamond mine in the world, in the remote Maluti Mountain range – is famed for the size, quality, clarity and particularly the whiteness of its diamonds. Four of the five largest white diamonds recovered this century have come from there; in 2006, the Lesotho Promise, 603ct, was recovered there, followed a year later by the 493ct Letšeng Legacy and then by the 478ct Light of Letšeng, mined in September 2008. All four have been acquired, and cut and polished by Graff Diamonds. Although this mine yields many or most of the world’s largest diamonds today, a find of this magnitude, a colossal 550ct rough of supreme quality is breathtakingly rare. Mrs Mazvi Maharasoa, CEO of Letšeng Diamonds, tells of the huge excitement generated in the plant the moment the stone was found in the so-called ‘glove box’ in the recovery room. ‘At a time like this, the whole unit is euphoric,’ she says. ‘In fact, once the news is shared, the whole nation beams with pride.’ In the final recovery plant at Letšeng, the ‘concentrate’ – ore containing diamonds that has been extracted from crushed, washed, filtered material hauled out of the mine – is processed for further concentration, sorted by size and sent down chutes into individual glove boxes for different-sized stones at the far end of the room. The clear boxes are fitted with two gloves into which the sorter puts his or her hands to do the final sifting. The very last box in the room is for 100ct-plus stones. The particular individual on the shift at the time the stone is found in the glove box is generally known as the person to have made the find but, says Maharasoa, every person involved in the process, from the ore-blasting teams to the recovery teams, shares in the joy: ‘Every individual is considered integral to our success.’ She explains that although technical data from a particular load

of ore might alert them to the possibility of a large rough discovery, the probability is still tiny and a find such as that of the LetĹĄeng Star is still a huge and unexpected surprise. It is the culmination of a long, heavy and convoluted mining process entailing many different stages, from long-term economic and operating planning to drilling, loading and hauling, all involving a vast area of mountainous terrain. The team at LetĹĄeng talk of the enormous scale of the operations and, to set the rarity of this unique discovery in context, explain that the trucks used for ore carry around 33 tons, each around the size of two large home swimming pools. They say that, on average, they have to tip two of these to get one carat, or 1,000 trucks to get the 500ct stone. As soon as Graff had acquired the rough, the next painstaking but crucial process began as Graffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s senior team of expert gemmologists set to work examining the stone and assessing its potential for cutting and polishing. The rough included a portion that was unusable, so this was immediately removed and the diamond rescanned.

perfecting beauty The magnificent 550ct Letšeng Star, the 14th largest white gem diamond on record, left. Advanced technology takes into account the dimensions of Graff’s ideal cuts, before presenting options for cutting the stone. The option chosen, below left, featured a range of perfect pear shape stones, one of which is shown, opposite, left, during the cutting and polishing process by Graff’s Master Cutters. His Majesty King Letsie III and Her Majesty Queen ’Masenate Mohato Seeiso of Lesotho, opposite, right

Using the latest state-of-the-art scanning technology and equipment, the team plotted and negotiated the particularly complex structure of this rough, streaked with natural internal flaws, which were mapped into the computer system in order to create a precise digital version of the stone. The system then navigated inside the stone, avoiding the flaws and cracks using advanced computer algorithms, producing optimal polished solutions and permutations for cutting a series of flawless, or near-flawless, diamonds of various shapes and sizes. In its pursuit of perfection, Graff Diamonds has devised its own proportions and dimensions for the Graff ideal cut for each diamond shape – pear shape, round, marquise, oval, emerald – and these were also fed into the computer scanner which then delivered a clear map of the ideal Graff stones that the rough could yield. The menu of four different options offered up by the mammoth 550ct Letšeng Star, included one plan for a series of almost entirely pear shape diamonds. The intriguing idea of a collection of superb-quality, impeccably proportioned pear shape stones, with a strong and recognisable identity, appealed to the team, and the decision was made to go ahead. As always, after the lengthy planning and scanning stage, comes the nerve-tingling and highly skilled process of the cutting the stone. At Graff, cutting and polishing has evolved into a true art form, in the hands of a world-class expert team. Each cutter is gifted with intuition, individuality and acute sensibility to match his technical prowess. The rough was initially cut using lasers, then polished by hand by Graff’s in-house master-polishers, based in Antwerp, and at each stage the rough was reassessed and carefully inspected by the team. The entire process took over 13 months. The result was an unrivalled, immaculate and elegant collection of 27 pear shape diamonds, all D colour, and flawless or internally flawless, totalling 168.73 carats, ranging in size from 0.70 to 33.11 carats, with several around 1 and 3 carats. Just one round brilliant diamond of 1.03 carats was included in this panoply of modern masterpieces. Each and every pear shape stone possesses the same perfect proportions of the ideal Graff cut. The pristine pear shapes show the extraordinary beyond-‘D’ whiteness of the Letšeng stones to perfection, and the fluid forms emphasise

THE LARGEST WHITE DIAMONDS RECOVERED THIS CENTURY

ranK 1 2 3 4 5

name

carat WeigHt

country of recoVery

year of recoVery

Lesotho Promise Letšeng Star Cullinan Heritage Letšeng Legacy Light of Letšeng

603 550 508 493 478

Lesotho Lesotho South Africa Lesotho Lesotho

2006 2011 2009 2007 2008

*Cut & polished by Graf

* * * *

the limpid lustre, the ‘water’, of these rare Type IIA diamonds, now the most sought-after among connoisseurs for their soft, silky yet brilliant clarity, and their very particular, ethereal beauty. Each of the 27 diamonds clearly shows its origins in the revered mountain-top Letšeng Mine, a factor that is increasingly important to an ever more discerning clientele. Mazvi Maharasoa says, ‘It is absolutely clear that each of these is a Letšeng stone, and pedigree is critical in today’s market.’ Such a pedigree, together with the unsurpassed colour, clarity and quality of the diamonds, and the perfection and refinement of Graff’s cutting and polishing, deserved equally exceptional talents in terms of design and craftsmanship, when it came to the final stage of setting the diamonds into a focused collection of suitably imaginative, innovative, one-of-a-kind jewels. The femininity and fluidity of the pear shapes, and the otherworldly light now unleashed in the diamonds, set the tone for the collection. The largest stone, at 33.11 carats, forms the centrepiece of an alluring butterfly brooch, etched in silhouette, caught mid-flight, with raised wings of gossamer – openwork diamond lightness. The wings are set en tremblant, to quiver with each movement of the wearer, intensifying the effect of shimmering, fluttering, iridescent movement. Three pairs of earrings have been created, with 18ct, 11ct and 10ct pairs of luscious pear shape drops, one design with a light, leafy surmount, the others streamlined yet sensual. In typically audacious Graff style, the pièce de résistance is a dramatic flower brooch, its petals and leaves a generous shower of pear shape stones, outlined in trails of pink diamonds highlighting the extraordinary lustre of the diamonds, and set on a pavé diamond leafy stem. The multi-petalled blossom can be removed and worn as a smaller brooch. This is the latest of Graff modern heirloom jewels, composed of the earth’s rarest treasures, and enriched with a tale of diamond romance.

CUTTING EDGE lucio fontana created daring new art forms that questioned and challenged convention. GeorGe Pendle looks at the remarkable legacy of this unique 20th-century maverick

In 1958, the nearly 60-year-old sculptor Lucio Fontana stepped towards a canvas, knife in hand, and slashed it down its middle. It seemed the simplest of gestures, casual even, but, in fact, it was quite opposite. Fontana had roamed the 20th century in search of a new artistic language. He had created thousands of artworks using a vast array of materials, risking both critical ridicule and wilful obscurantism. He had pursued something that seemed forever just out of reach. So, when Fontana strode forward and slashed that canvas, it wasn’t just a slash – it was the distillation of 60 years of unwavering inquisitiveness, stubborn probing and unmatched technical prowess. There was nothing casual

about it. The journey had begun 60 years before in the city of Rosario de Santa Fé, Argentina, in 1899. The son of an Italian stonemason who specialised in monuments for the dead, the young Fontana was expected to enter the world of commercial sculpture too, but when his father took him to Italy at the age of seven, he soon became aware of a much wider world of art that was at that moment being shaken to its core. Much of this shaking had been supplied by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti who, in 1909, had published the Manifesto of Futurism. This called for a violent rejection of the past and an embracing of the automobile, the aeroplane and the radio. Monarchies were outdated, declared Marinetti,

religion was old hat, speed and technology were the new gods and militarism was the new sanctity. The young Fontana was enamoured. It was his first love and sparked a lifelong infatuation with avant-garde movements. It was not just Futurism’s thrilling announcement of a new technological age that excited him, but the form it took. The strident manifestos, the philosophical declarations, the high theatre of being involved in an artistic movement would infuse his practice for the rest of his life. When World War I erupted, the 17-year-old Fontana enlisted in the Italian army. He was badly wounded in the arm, but rather than cure him of his Futurist sympathies, it seemed merely to have confirmed them. ‘I experienced the battlefield in all

lwl-westfaelisches landesmuseum, muenster, Germany/the BridGeman art liBrary; © oliver wolleh, Berlin; christie’s imaGes/corBis; the israel museum, jerusalem, israel/Gift of BarBara levinson, new york, to the american friends of the israel museum/the BridGeman art liBrary; private collection/the BridGeman art liBrary; contrasto/eyevine

its thunder,’ he would say in an interview later in life. ‘To that I owe my inclination toward art and toward exteriorisation in any form. Art was looking for new horizons. We believed the old models had been smashed to pieces on the battlefields.’ But where was he to find new ones? In post-war Italy, a host of artistic movements clamoured for precedence. Futurists, Symbolists, Rationalists, Secessionists all vied to become the pre-eminent faction of the day, but it was the Novocento school, with its rejection of avant-garde modernism and revival of classical Italian virtues that was most warmly embraced by Benito Mussolini and the Fascist authorities. As if reflecting the artistic flux of the age, Fontana’s sculptural style ranged wildly during these years. His first solo exhibition took place in 1931, only months after he graduated from the Milan Academy. The sculptures he produced were earthy, elemental reliefs, quite at odds with the

figurative clarity of the Novocento school. ‘Figure at the Window’ (1931) saw an indistinct body struggling to break free from its background. Most radically, Fontana had painted parts of it – a choice that enraged the purist critics. ‘Fontana is one of those who squanders his intelligence in attitudes of opposition and polemic against antique art and against the academy,’ wrote one critic. ‘Coloured like sugar candies,’ sniffed another. As Anthony White suggests in Lucio Fontana: Between Utopia and Kitsch, his sculptures had a ‘sensuous materiality that was considered improper to disinterested aesthetic experience.’ But, for Fontana, the use of colour was an attempt to break up the static quality of traditional sculpture. The artworks he showed in 1931 were not quite paintings and not quite solid sculptural objects. They floated somewhere in-between, seeming to transcend traditional notions of form. They were the first step on his journey towards a new artistic medium. Fontana never refused the Fascist lira – few artists could afford to. But even in his overtly political commissions, he saw chances to experiment and further his own artistic quest. His 6m-tall allegorical figure ‘Victory’ (1936) appeared as the centrepiece of the Salone della Vittoria – a monumental interior that celebrated Italy’s recent brutal triumph in the Abyssinian War. It was an undoubtedly nationalistic piece, but it also allowed him to explore his growing interest in the ways art and architecture could be blended together to form an immersive experience for the viewer. In 1940, Fontana returned to Argentina again and, when Italy entered the World War II, he decided to stay, founding an experimental art school in Buenos Aires. Freed from the warring movements of Europe, he finally had the chance to create his own group, rather than attempt to fit uncomfortably into someone else’s. The result, which he created in collaboration with his students, was the White Manifesto. Published in 1946, it was, as Pia Gottschaller wrote in Lucio Fontana: The Artist’s Materials, ‘infused with a liberal dose of utopian expectation’. It called on artists to produce work that is ‘a sum of physical elements – colour, sound, movement, time and space,’ as well as asking scientists to create new high-tech materials for them to use. The White Manifesto may have been infuriatingly abstruse, but it was the first sign Fontana’s previous iconoclastic tendencies were coalescing into a theory. On returning to Milan in 1947, Fontana announced the arrival of the new art movement of Spatialism. He declared it would ‘liberate art from matter.’ He now wrote manifesto after manifesto, and, while he was consistent in his calls to help

cut and thrust One of Lucio Fontana’s signature slashed paintings, previous pages, ‘Spatial Concept, 1959 (artificial resin on canvas)’, and a photographic portrait of the artist by Lothar Wolleh. ‘Spatial Concept, 1949’ and ‘Spatial Concept (waterpaint on canvas)’, opposite from top. ‘New York 15, 1962 (aluminium)’, right, and, far right, Fontana at work in his studio in Milan in 1967

‘painting escape from the frame and sculpture from its bell jar’, the means of doing this often changed. Most of his ideas, however, were tinged with science and science fiction, as when he talked of an art that could be transmitted into the ether ‘using the conquests of television. By means of a special keyboard, the colours of the rainbow will be introduced into the sky, so that we will have multi-coloured days.’ It was exuberant, crazy, funny. Like Marinetti and the Futurists before him, Fontana was seeking a radical rethinking of what art should be. And then, in 1949, he went one step further and the far-ranging ideas in his manifestos suddenly seemed to slip into the real world. ‘Spatial Environment in Black Light’ (1949) was a small dark room from the ceiling of which hung nine large, writhing, organic papier-mâché forms, painted in fluorescent paint. A black light provided the only illumination, causing the

Like marinetti and the Futurists beFore him, Fontana was seeking a radicaL rethinking oF what art shouLd be

strange shapes to glow ominously above viewers’ heads. Was the room meant to be a planetarium? A spider’s web? A macabre carnival booth? Each visitor had his or her own idea, but Fontana’s main aim was to create an entirely new artistic space in which one did not contemplate a detached form, but actually entered into the pictorial environment itself. Three-dimensional and site-specific, ‘Spatial Environment…’ was the forerunner of the ‘Installation Art’ that filled the latter half of the 20th century, from the work of Light and Space artists such as Robert Irwin and Doug Wheeler to the hysterical Day-Glo installations of Yayoi Kusama. The critics were both baffled and awed. It was, said one, ‘the first graffito of the atomic age’. It was also an extension of the blending of art and architecture that Fontana had worked on before the war in his Fascist-themed piece ‘Victory’. However, rather than being temple-like

‘Spatial Environment…’ was dark, eerie and altogether ambiguous. ‘Neon Structure for the 9th Triennial of Milan’ (1951) followed soon after. A gigantic light sculpture that hovered over a grand staircase at the triennial, it was made from over 100ft of white neon tubing that had been curled and looped into an arabesque. Elegant, seemingly immaterial, it was, declared Fontana, ‘neither painting nor sculpture, luminous shape in space – emotive freedom for the spectator.’ Some likened the swirling loop of the neon structure to the pouredpaint technique of Jackson Pollock, who, in 1950, had just been exhibited in Italy for the first time. Despite these successes something was troubling Fontana. While ‘Spatial Environment…’ and ‘Neon Structure’ were radically new art forms, they still, inevitably, clung to the physical. His manifestos had spoken of destroying the art object completely. Was this even possible? He began to worry that what he ultimately wanted from Spatialism was beyond the boundaries of rational thought itself. ‘I have the feeling of having thought something that goes beyond intelligence – something lunatic or crazy.’ Strangely enough, when he tried to resolve these doubts, the answer would not be found in cutting-edge science – as his manifestos had suggested – but through the use of a canvas, that

ancient technology that was the very epitome of the art he had been trying to leave behind. In 1957, as space flight became a reality, Fontana began to poke small holes into unadorned sheets of paper, canvas and metal. He termed these works ‘Buchi’ – ‘holes’ – and spoke of how they opened up the space behind the picture. ‘I make a hole in a canvas in order to leave behind the old pictorial formulae, the painting and the traditional view of art, and I escape – symbolically, but also materially – from the prison of the flat surface. I have not attempted to decorate a surface, I have tried to break its dimensional limitations.’ When these works were lit from behind, they came alive with shadows caused by the ridges of the punctured paper. The effect was not dissimilar to that of craters on the moon. Whereas the Abstract Expressionists were seeking artistic purity by embracing the ‘flatness’ of the picture plane, Fontana was manipulating and violating the pictorial surface in search of new spaces beyond the flat. To him, Jackson Pollock was nothing but a ‘post-Impressionist’ who had tried but failed to go beyond the canvas. And then, in 1958, Fontana picked up a Stanley knife, placed the tip of its blade on the canvas, and moved his hand downward in one quick movement. And thus were born his famous ‘Tagli’, or ‘cuts’, works. It was a complete subversion of the painting method. The canvas, which had, for centuries, been a provider of illusory space for artists, now held within it actual space. Indeed, by replacing a brush with a knife, Fontana had robbed the act of painting of its very content. From being a mode of creation, the brushstroke had become the bearer of absence. His painterly gesture had not created line or shape, but an elongated, tapering, lightly curving hole – an opening that suggested something beyond the canvas. Here was the answer to all his manifestos, all his wishes of creating a unique art that went beyond matter. With the slash, he had transformed the two-dimensional canvas into a gateway to infinite space. A month before his death in 1969, the artist gave his last interview. Asked to opine on the future of art, he replied, ‘Art is going to be a completely different thing… not an object, not a form… Art is going to become infinite, immensity, immaterial, philosophy.’ Fontana had already taken it halfway there.

archivio cameraphoto epoche/getty images; de agostini/getty images; © LUCIO FONTANA/SIAE/DACS LONDON 2013

space exploration ‘Spatial Light, 1951’, left, and, below, Fontana in front of one of his trademark ‘Tagli’ canvases at the Biennale, 1966

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passionate colour and extraordinary craftsmanship create a ravishing vision in a vivid paradise photography David Slijper | styling Hannah Teare

Pear shape emerald earrings set with round diamonds (Diamonds 9.04cts, Emeralds 45.85cts). Carved emerald and round and pear shape diamond necklace (Diamonds 73.00cts, Emeralds 151.53cts). Carved emerald and round and pear shape diamond double brooch (Diamonds 39.87cts, Emeralds 164.68cts), worn as belt. 16.93ct Emerald cut emerald ring (right hand). 13.19ct Lozenge cut emerald ring (left hand). Dress by Catherine Deane at Harvey Nichols Sapphire and diamond Infinity earrings (Diamonds 4.36cts, Sapphires 17.26cts). Diamond Infinity necklace (Diamonds 24.36cts). 18.04ct Oval cut sapphire ring set with round diamonds (Diamonds 9.89cts). Beaded pant suit by Nicholas Oakwell. Multishape diamond chandelier earrings (Diamonds 25.35cts). Multishape diamond necklace (Diamonds 94.11cts). Round diamond three-row bracelet (Diamonds 69.61cts). 20.26ct pear shape diamond ring. Dress by Ralph & Russo Round diamond earrings set with pear shape diamonds (Diamonds 13.94cts). Round diamond collar necklace (Diamonds 275.21cts). Round diamond cuff (Diamonds 258.95cts). 23.55ct D Internally Flawless cushion cut diamond ring. Dress by Ralph & Russo. Shoes by Charlotte Olympia Multishape diamond earrings (Diamonds 46.78cts). Multishape yellow and white diamond dragonfly brooch (Diamonds 86.11cts). 20.26ct Fancy Intense Yellow pear shape diamond ring. Dress by Azagury

Multishape diamond earrings (Diamonds 20.83cts). Round diamond necklace (Diamonds 90.35cts). Multishape diamond butterfly brooch (Diamonds 119.99cts). Round diamond bracelet (Diamonds 80.77cts). 23.61ct D Internally Flawless round diamond ring. Dress by Ulyana Sergeenko Round and pear shape diamond earrings set with oval sapphires (Diamonds 10.45cts, Sapphires 3.11cts). Round and pear shape diamond necklace set with cushion cut sapphires (Diamonds 51.39cts, Sapphires 57.78 cts). Round and marquise cut diamond bracelet (Diamonds 37.40cts). 11.79ct Cushion cut sapphire ring set with multishape diamonds (Diamonds 13.31cts). Dress by Nicholas Oakwell Set design Simon Costin Set designer’s assistants Suzanne Beirne and Roger Hare Photographer’s assistants James Perry and Gareth Horton Stylist’s assistant Hannah Sheen Hair Ken O’Rourke Make-up Mary Jane Frost Nails Mike Pocock Model Frederikke Winther at Viva Retouching Hempstead May

TOKYO TempO To look aT japan Today, iT is difficulT To imagine iTs 200 years of isolaTionism up unTil The 19Th cenTury. Today, wriTes ROB GOss, The capiTal is a mélange of ancienT and modern, TradiTional and wesTern, humble and ulTra-luxurious

ou can live in Japan for decades and still not get a real handle on what makes the country tick. This is a land where cities transform themselves with a ferocious frequency, yet the traditions within them endure unthreatened for centuries. The thirst for new technology is insatiable, but nothing is as revered as highly skilled, low-tech craftsmanship. Recessions come and go, yet demand for luxury persists regardless. It may be a cliché to say it, but Japan really is a country that is defined by contrasts. In major cities – Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, or the former capital Kyoto – the mix of old and new has blended effortlessly together at times. At others, it flies in the face of rhyme or reason. The grand Senso-ji temple complex in Tokyo’s Asakusa district dates from the 600s, but it’s hard to imagine its five-storey pagoda not sharing the Asakusa

skyline with Phillipe Starck’s eye-catching Asahi Beer Hall (resembling a glass of beer complete with frothy head) or even the 634m Tokyo Skytree tower that now dominates the city’s east side. Part of what makes Japan so distinct and at times perplexing – certainly to non-Japanese – is its knack for taking on board foreign traditions and twisting them into something that is distinctly Japanese. The same can be said of the way the language so often incorporates and modifies other tongues – from simple loan words that retain their original meaning, such as ‘business’ (pronounced ‘bijinesu’), to pseudo-anglicisms like ‘catch copy’ (meaning ‘slogan’). The country can feel familiar yet otherworldly at the same time. Japan wasn’t always this willing to embrace the West. From the 1630s through to 1853, the Tokugawa shogunate’s sakoku (‘chained country’) policy forbade, upon penalty of death, any foreigner to enter or Japanese to leave. And while there were

life in tokyo The capital’s skyline, with Mount Fuji in the background, previous page. Ginza district in the 1880s, this picture, and today, opposite

government-sanctioned trade exemptions, even they were tightly controlled to effectively isolate the country. But when Japan did finally reopen in response to American pressure, it didn’t take long for Western influences to make a mark. Just look at central Tokyo and the development of areas such as Ginza, long the playground for the elite. Ginza can trace its association with wealth back to 1612, when the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu chose it as the site for a silver-coin mint. In fact, that’s how the area got its name, gin za meaning just that in Japanese. Almost 260 years later and with the Tokugawa’s mint long since relocated to neighbouring Nihombashi in the wake of a moneylaundering scandal, the Meiji government embarked on a rebuilding project in Ginza and the surrounding districts as a measure against the fires that would all too frequently wreak havoc in Tokyo’s densely packed wood-built neighbourhoods. The new Meiji emperor, heavily influenced by Western culture and keen to modernise the nation after centuries of Edo isolation, gave Ginza

there’s a mix of old and new that at times has blended effortlessly, but at others flies in the face of rhyme or reason

a Western makeover. Paved sidewalks appeared, as did gas streetlights. Horse-drawn trams started to ply the thoroughfares, eventually being upgraded to electric trams in the early 1900s. Brick and stone buildings gradually replaced wood structures under the supervision of European architects. Many wellheeled Tokyoites, the emperor included, adopted Western clothing in place of traditional attire. Although rural Japan remained as traditional as ever, Tokyo had become European to the eye. At the Ginza Crossing, the area’s focal point, one of these earliest buildings still dominates. Originally built in 1894, then slowly reconstructed

after the Great Tokyo Earthquake of 1923, the now iconic curved granite façade and clock tower of Wako Building is one of just a handful of pre-war buildings remaining in central Tokyo. It’s also a rather prestigious place to shop – Wako is one of Japan’s most exclusive department stores. You don’t need to look far from Wako to understand why Ginza is regarded as Tokyo’s premier shopping district. Directly across the road from it is the equally prestigious Mitsukoshi department store, its entrance guarded by a bronze lion that seems to have come from the same mould as those that sit before Nelson’s Column in London – proof perhaps that not everything taken from overseas gets Japanised. But there is far more to Ginza than retail. A five-minute walk south-east of the Ginza Crossing is the Kabukiza Theatre, the country’s foremost venue for performances of kabuki – a heavily stylised classical dance-drama featuring elaborate costumes and stage sets. The three Chinese characters, or kanji, that are used to create the word

B.S.P.I/CorBIS; Kjeld duItS ColleCtIon/MeIjIShowa; taKahaShI Sato/aManaIMageS/CorBIS; hIroShI uzu/getty IMageS

kabuki mean ‘sing’, ‘dance’ and ‘skill’ – apt to say the least. North-west from the Ginza Crossing, meanwhile, heading along Harumi-dori in the direction of the Imperial Palace, comes the elegant Peninsula Hotel – part of a wave of overseas luxury establishments that transformed Tokyo’s luxury hotel scene in the 2000s. The five-star property is an appropriately upmarket location for what was one of Graff’s first stores in Asia when it opened here in 2007. It doesn’t take much time in Ginza to recognise that luxury, refinement and style are prevalent themes, yet the area doesn’t have a monopoly on the high-end. Since the late-1990s, Ginza has been rivalled by the sleek, high-rise Roppongi Hills and Tokyo Midtown urban complexes in the Roppongi district. These are often described as cities within a city because they each contain cutting-edge art galleries, luxury malls, sumptuous restaurants and five-star hotels. Then there’s Omotesando-dori – a chic, kilometre-long, tree-lined avenue in the very heart

of Tokyo that has long offered a brand-namelittered shopping alternative to Ginza, coupled with architectural inventiveness. Omotesando-dori was originally designated as a sombre approach to Meiji Jingu – a classically designed Shinto shrine, with grounds stretching some 700,000sq m, built in the early years of the last century to house the souls of the Emperor and Empress Meiji. However, as Tokyo was rebuilt after World War II and as the post-war economic miracle then brought unprecedented wealth to the country, Omotesando-dori developed into what the guidebooks tend to refer to as Tokyo’s Champs-Élysées, with luxury retail outlets, chic cafés and a Continental atmosphere transforming the area. Given the Meiji emperor’s desire to modernise the city during his reign, you can’t help but feel he might rather approve of how Omotesando has turned out. Stroll Omotesando-dori now and the modern architecture on display is striking. An obvious highlight is Tod’s Building, a slim, L-shaped

building designed in 2004 by conceptual architect Toyo Ito and encased in an enclosure of sharply angled concrete elements and polygonal glass plates. It’s part of an impressive body of work that brought Ito the prestigious 2013 Pritzker Prize for Architecture. Then there is globally renowned architect Tadao Ando’s 2006 Omotesando Hills mall, stretching along one quarter of Omotesandodori’s length. Its defining feature is a six-level atrium that reaches three storeys above ground and three below, with a spiralling ramp connecting the levels. It shouldn’t be a surprise in a country where ancient temples can comfortably share the skyline with gleaming skyscrapers that luxury isn’t restricted to stylish districts such as Omotesando and Ginza. Take Shinjuku – just 15 minutes from Ginza, but culturally quite different. Nowhere better represents bustling, sometimes brash, modern Japan better than its perpetually heaving, neon-lit streets. In place of Ginza’s Michelin-starred restaurants, Shinjuku is the place to find a casual backstreet izakaya (pub-restaurant) or wander

new beginnings Cherry blossom lines the moat of Edo Castle, this picture. Graff’s new Tokyo location in the Isetan department store, below and below right, and its general manager Hiroshi Teruushi, accompanied by Laurence (left) and François Graff. Before the store itself opened, ‘The Stage’, bottom right, featured an exhibition celebrating the heritage of Graff Diamonds

the narrow streets of the Golden Gai sector for a bohemian all-night bar. As well as the odd luxury department store, such as the venerable Isetan, Shinjuku throws home-electronics megastores into the shopping mix. In a city of contrasts, it is most definitely the capital. Fitting then that, in Isetan, Tokyo’s de facto capital is also home to Graff’s most recently opened store in Japan. Designed by interior architect Peter Marino in collaboration with Graff’s Monaco-based in-house team, its floor is inlaid with intricate mosaic marble, and a chandelier featuring thousands of multi-coloured glass spheres stretches across its entire length. It’s a design tour de force that would fit effortlessly into the chic surrounds of Ginza, Omotesando or Roppongi. To coincide with the opening of the boutique, Graff created ‘The Stage’ – a special exhibition on the ground floor of the busy Isetan department store, where visitors queued to view jewellery, learn about the history and heritage of Graff and view a very special diamond flown in from London for the occasion. The ultimate in painstaking, handmade jewellery by master craftsmen using traditional techniques and skills, on display in the city that craves the latest in advanced technology… it all adds to the contrasts that combine to make Tokyo so special.

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NATUREâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S miRAclE taking inspiration from the beauty of the natural world, scintillating diamonds are expertly crafted in exquisite forms photography Graeme Montgomery | set design Zoe Bradley

Multishape diamond cuff (Diamonds 109.82cts) Diamond tiara (Diamonds 46.30cts) Diamond Bird of Paradise brooch set with a pink diamond eye (Diamonds 36.31cts) 52.73ct Fancy Vivid Yellow emerald cut diamond ring. 21.10ct D Flawless cushion cut diamond ring 16ct Yellow pear shape diamond drop earrings set with round, square emerald cut and pear shape diamonds (Diamonds 41.20cts) Sapphire, emerald, diamond and ruby chandelier earrings set with over 9cts of diamonds Photographerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s assistant Tom Hartford Stylistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s assistant Pui Yee Tong Retouching Matthew Arnold

botanical paradise the gardens of the delaire graff estate in south africa’s cape Winelands are a shoWcase for World-renoWned horticulturalist Keith Kirsten’s signature exuberance and creative expertise photographY Micky Hoyle | Words Catriona Ross A spectacular sight rewards those who drive up Helshoogte Pass from Stellenbosch. Marking the entrance to Delaire Graff Estate is a vast stone amphitheatre, radiant with layered colour and foliage: leaves shimmer, sunlight pours through gold and amber petals, and a regal three-ton sandstone head by sculptor Anton Smit gazes out across the Banhoek Valley. As if having identified a rough diamond with dazzling potential, Laurence Graff purchased the estate in 2003, aiming to transform it into South Africa’s leading luxury hospitality and art destination. With this intention in mind, the country’s foremost landscape artist, Keith Kirsten, was briefed to create an authentically Cape garden that would provide colour year-round. A sense of the

indigenous was preferred, although the plant selections were not limited to local species. Additionally, the garden was designed to provide a living backdrop to the Graff collection of South African sculpture, including works by Deborah Bell, Dylan Lewis and Anton Smit. Keith Kirsten is well known internationally for his garden designs, radio and television appearances, books and public lectures, not to mention his effusive personality and passion for anything with roots. Sipping a crisp Delaire Graff Sauvignon Blanc in the shade of pin oak trees on the restaurant terrace, he expounds upon what he loves about gardening. ‘It’s nature; it’s that bud opening; it’s seeing the Crepuscule roses growing along the wall at the entrance to Delaire Graff Estate. When I drove in this morning, that whole wall of apricot colour put a lilt in my step. It’s everything, from the changing seasons to the

smell of the lawn being cut. Plants and flowers: there’s nothing like them.’ Keith leans towards a relaxed gardening style, often making use of indigenous plants, always being water-wise, and planting to suit the space, which is why the Delaire Graff Estate assignment set his pulse racing. Unlike some local wine estates, where whitewashed Cape Dutch manor houses pair well with muted gardens of Iceberg roses and hydrangeas, Delaire Graff Estate’s contemporary architecture allowed Keith a refreshing freedom. In came Madiba hybrid king proteas, intense yellow Mandela’s Gold Strelitzias (Bird of Paradise), mature cycads and a cluster of statuesque aloes to give a burst of winter colour at the entrance to the Lodges and Spa. Under-appreciated South African plants, including restio grasses, cabbage trees and the vibrant coral tree, were planted around the car parks and

the joys of spring The Estate’s tree-lined driveway, opening page, is home to two sculptures by Anton Smit. Dylan Lewis’s cheetah, opposite, top, is silhouetted perfectly against the backdrop of the famed Simonsberg mountain, while, opposite, below, a bee pays a visit to a vibrant Mediterranean paper flower. The glorious Bird of Paradise flower, right, gives bursts of colour throughout the grounds, which were designed by horticulturalist Keith Kirsten, below

entrance to the estate and winery. In fact, more than 350 varieties of indigenous plant populate the garden, which is tended by a dedicated team overseen by the estate manager, who devotes half of his time solely to it. For the team at Keith Kirsten Horticulture International, designing and replanting the site for the estate’s official opening in June 2009 was a two-year process involving setbacks and innovative solutions. The team, led by designer and master gardener Raymond Hudson, began work in one of the region’s wettest winters, but, despite delays, the Delaire Graff Restaurant and Wine Lounge opened in July 2009, and diners overlooked sumptuous views of landscaped gardens, undulating vineyards and olive groves stretching to the Simonsberg and Groot Drakenstein Mountains. Plants selected would have to tolerate sometimes inhospitable conditions, including frequent high winds, summer heat of up to 40°C, and winter nights when the rain pours down and temperatures drop to near zero. The tree-lined avenue up the hill, exposed to the elements, is underplanted with hardy Double Diamond agapanthus and shrubs such as Sheena’s Mini Gold hedge (Duranta) and Dune crowberry (Rhus crenata) from the windswept South African coast. Building the amphitheatre on the steep mountain pass was ‘a mammoth task’, Keith notes. The area was terraced and levelled by means of gabion walls – stone-filled cages stacked and wired together to form retaining barriers. Trees and cascading plants were added, plus indigenous plants such as Strelitzia reginae, Cape restios, flowering confetti bush, pelargonium species, Salvia chamelaeagnea, Delesperma cooperii, and a soft carpet of Carissa macrocarpa (Natal plum). Indigenous Phyla nodiflora (Lippia) daisy lawn, which grows flat and does not require mowing, was used in level areas. Creative solutions were required in smaller areas too. Determined to plant flowers on the narrow sloping bank between the Lodges’ lawn and the vineyards, Keith found a way of preventing the new plants from washing away in the rain: he inserted small plant plugs into hessian matting, and flowering fynbos (shrubland) varieties interplanted with silver helichrysum (salt bush) in a glorious range of colours. Structure, particularly

Keith’s relaxed gardening style meant often using indigenous plants, being water-wise and planting to suit the space

‘Laurence Graff is a man of exceptionaL detaiL,’ expLains Keith. ‘he passionateLy wanted to create a fantastic Garden and desiGn experience’

in the form of hedging, was incorporated to balance Keith’s preference for wilder, flamboyant gardens and reflect the Graff ethos and intricacy of crafting jewellery. In the gardens of the Lodges and Spa, for instance, terracing, hedging and mirror-imaging create a more controlled and therefore more tranquil atmosphere. ‘Laurence Graff is a man of exceptional detail,’ explains Keith. ‘He passionately wanted to create a fantastic garden and design experience, but he preferred a more manicured, formal look. So we redid the whole restaurant entrance one weekend while he was here. We pulled up plants and replanted to get it just right, and it’s matured well.’ A patron of the South African National Water Conservation campaign, Keith stresses the importance of environmentally conscious gardening. With semi-drought conditions already a reality in the Cape, after much deliberation, many of the estate’s water-sapping alien bluegum trees were removed. ‘We took out all the damaged, lightning-struck trees. We could never have planted a garden like this under them; they would have robbed the soil,’ says Keith. The original oaks were retained, however; a tree surgeon resurrected them, pruning and cleaning each tree, branch by branch. Since sprayer irrigation causes substantial water loss in the Cape’s constant wind, a drip irrigation system was installed to ensure there would be minimal water wastage. ‘I’m very against planting anything that is unsuitable or ecologically incorrect,’ Keith states. He is, however, a fan of happy horticultural marriages – which meant, in this case, importing non-invasive plants from the Mediterranean, Australia and California, and settling them beside similar indigenous plants. In the entrance amphitheatre Mediterranean cypresses, olive trees, bright bougainvilleas and purple statice intermingle with many of the fynbos species seen in Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden: strelitzias, pincushions, leucodendrons, watsonias, wild garlic and the fragrant shrub, Hottentots kooigoed. And there’s always a place for roses:

GARDEN OF EDEN A carpet of Agapanthus ‘Amethyst’, opposite, nestles beneath olive trees. The entrance to the Delaire Graff Estate, this picture, combines calm structure with wilder flowering forms, while, below, Gazanias introduce glorious apricot hues into the mix

along the driveway a wall cascades with the soft-apricot climbing rose, Crepuscule. Gabion walls behind the restaurant are softened with star jasmine; behind the winery with its organically curving roof is a hedge of Cape honeysuckle with restio grasses, wild irises and gazania groundcover. In many such areas, Keith insisted on six inches of bare earth along the bottom of a wall – a significant detail that provides a strip in which to plant a creeper. The estate strives for ‘green walls’: stone and brick will soon be entirely covered by the foliage of Virginia (Parthenocissus) and tickey creepers (Ficus repens), and eventually, all walls on the property will blend into the landscape. Green gastronomy is a theme cultivated by Laurence Graff and Christiaan Campbell, executive chef at the Delaire Graff Restaurant, both supporters of organic and biodynamic food.

Fresh produce, fertilised by the on-site wormery, is picked daily from the estate’s herb, salad and vegetable garden, including beetroot, kohl rabi, artichokes, broad beans and, naturally, podded peas for one of Laurence Graff’s favourite dishes: gourmet fish and chips with mushy peas. Kitchen staff only have to step outside the restaurant to pick leaves from the bay hedge and fruits from the grenadilla vine and from the ‘sampling beds’ in wooden boxes: rosemary, Vietnamese coriander and broccoli leaves. A greenhouse supplies Asian herbs, micro-greens and vegetables to the estate’s Asian-inspired restaurant, Indochine. Delaire Graff Estate’s holistic philosophy extends to encouraging biodiversity. ‘You’ll see sunbirds on those pincushions, and birds’ nests in the protection of the walls covered by Virginia creeper,’ Keith notes proudly. Indeed, these natural jewels have found the perfect setting.

the PeACOCK’s tAle taking pride of place in graff’s collection is a new brooch, the rarity of which is beyond measure words Joanne Glasbey

The English poet and visionary William Blake wrote that ‘the pride of the peacock is the glory of God’. Throughout history, myth, legend and lore, the bird has variously been a symbol of integrity, nobility, protection, good luck and, above all, the beauty that can be achieved if we endeavour to show our true colours. Now, the extraordinarily vibrant hues of the peacock’s plumage and tail feathers, proudly displayed in a beautiful fan, have been interpreted by Graff in a truly unique brooch. This breathtaking piece, recently unveiled, features an exceptional collection of coloured diamonds. Incomprehensibly rare gems with a

total of 120.81 carats adorn the brooch and, at its heart, sits an absolutely astonishing 20.02ct Fancy Deep Blue pear shape diamond – one of the rarest blue diamonds in the world. All around this striking centrepiece – which has an ingenious clasp design, allowing the stone to be removed and worn in two ways – is an array of white and coloured diamonds that have been expertly set by Graff’s master craftsmen at its London workshop. The house’s latest creation represents the ultimate in beauty, which can be achieved only when the finest diamonds are assembled by the finest artisans, bringing forth a piece of jewellery of entirely unrivalled splendour.

HIGH TIME Since the launch of Graff watcheS in 2009, itS Skilled watchmakerS have artfully combined captivatinG deSiGn with mechanical maStery, writeS SIMON DE BURTON. thiS SeaSon’S timepieceS Set even hiGher StandardS photoGraphy Richard Foster | StylinG Sam Logan

maSterGraff ultra flat tourbillon (riGht) The flying tourbillon is one of the most advanced of all complications and, in an exceptional show of technical mastery, Graff’s watchmakers have successfully incorporated the whirling cage (which contains the escapement that counteracts the effect of gravity on accuracy) into an exceptionally thin movement called the Graff Calibre 4 – a mere 3.5mm deep. Indeed, the entire case extends to just 7.05mm, yet retains the unique faceted design that makes a Graff watch instantly recognisable. Initially, this masterpiece will be available with a delectable navy blue dial in a limited edition of 50 pieces.

GraffStar Grand date (next paGe, left) True horophiles will appreciate this understated watch’s hand-wound, Calibre 1 movement – a mechanism exclusive to Graff. It offers the opportunity to carry out the distinctly satisfying ritual of manually recharging the mainspring, which holds sufficient power to enable the watch to run for 50 hours. A further demonstration of mechanical excellence can be seen in the inclusion of a highly legible ‘large date’ display at the 12 o’clock position, complemented by a power reserve indicator at six o’clock and small seconds at nine. The dial centre, meanwhile, is hand-decorated with an exquisite guilloche pattern.

chronoGraff (next paGe, riGht) For 2013, this cornerstone of Graff’s watch collection becomes simultaneously more elegant and more functional, thanks to a new, multi-level dial featuring a smooth centre and contrasting guilloche edges. Its uncluttered appearance and high degree of legibility can be attributed to the use of rotating discs rather than conventional sub-dials for the chronograph functions. Constant seconds are read from the subdial, with the central seconds hand being activated and stopped using the chronograph push pieces.

Graff lace (PaGe 65) Replicating the delicate fall of a piece of lace in a timepiece made from diamonds was an undoubtedly difficult task, but Graff’s peerless gem-setters have achieved it with this limited-edition cocktail watch, just 10 examples of which will be made. Supple, shimmering and superbly constructed, the Graff Lace features a bracelet comprising no fewer than 180 fancy cut diamonds of differing shapes and sizes, which are skilfully linked together to give the appearance of floating freely on the wrist. The white gold dial of the watch, meanwhile, is set with a further 104 round diamonds and surrounded by a white gold case. The total weight of diamonds used amounts to 44 carats.

MaSterGraff Minute rePeater tourBillon (PreViouS PaGe, left) The minute repeater complication, considered by many to be the apotheosis of the watchmaker’s art, first became available in the Graff range in 2011. This latest version of the MasterGraff Minute Repeater, which also features a flying tourbillon encircled by a small seconds disc, combines horological brilliance with true beauty, thanks to the inclusion of a dial hand made from pure mother-of-pearl, carved with a radial motif that shimmers elegantly in the light. Available in navy blue, black or white mother-of-pearl, the new dial complements perfectly the imposing 47mm case, which enhances the tones of the minute repeater’s two hammers and two gongs that can be triggered on demand by a slide on the side of the case.

BaByGraff triloGy (PreViouS PaGe, riGht) The BabyGraff was the first jewelled ladies’ piece to be offered in the Graff watch collection, and the variety of designs in which it has subsequently appeared have all proved highly popular. This latest version, the Trilogy, has been inspired by three classic diamond cuts: emerald, heart and brilliant. Each is represented in the invisibly set design, which covers the exceptionally feminine case. Limited to 100 examples, the BabyGraff Trilogy is available in a round, emerald or heart-shaped case with blued steel hands and Graff’s trademark triangle-cut emerald at 12 o’clock.

Graff Butterfly (left) This latest interpretation of Graff’s graceful Butterfly watch includes the glittering addition of a diamond-set bracelet featuring 476 beautifully cut diamonds. Four pear shape diamonds create the wings of each butterfly and give the impression they are hovering above a bed of intricately set gem stones. Both the case and the centre of the dial, meanwhile, are paved with a further 366 diamonds, making a very grand total of 842, weighing 28.1 carats. The Graff Butterfly may also be specified on a black satin strap or with a dial background made from richly coloured sapphires, rubies or emeralds with alligator straps in complementary colours.

amazing grace Hokusai (The Great Wave) dress in degradĂŠ woven silk with an ocean of ostrich feathers, Nicholas Oakwell Couture S/S 13

the new Couture

Victoria Ling

couture is usually associated with the French. now, designer nicholas oakwell is Fighting the good Fight For British craFtsmanship on Both sides oF the channel, says CHARLIE BYRNE Couture: the shows are held in Paris, it’s a French word, and it doesn’t sound as elegant when said with an English accent. But it’s not just the French who excel at creating bespoke garments that draw on centuries of artisanal craftsmanship. Nicholas Oakwell may be the first British couturier to show in Paris since Charles Frederick Worth, but his brand is going from strength to strength. Oakwell founded his label in 2011, after originally training as a milliner, which taught him to appreciate fine detailing and intricate design. ‘The creation of a couture gown is a more complex process than most would imagine,’ he says. Much like in a jewellery atelier, creating one-off designs requires a team of specialised craftspeople, each with exceptional expertise – Oakwell uses a troop of pattern-cutters, drapers, weavers, beaders,

embroiderers and tailors. ‘It’s very important to get the right people at each step,’ he explains. Each gown can require hundreds of hours’ work by up to 20 artisans, who diligently and painstakingly embellish one tiny panel at a time with crystals and beads. ‘Just like a fine jeweller, we are often working with precious fabrics and it can be daunting to cut into them, but you have to be brave,’ the designer says. Oakwell will show his autumn/winter 2013 collection in Paris in July, where he will continue to demonstrate his skill at pairing age-old skills with new-age technology. ‘It’s important to make the most of cutting-edge techniques while also respecting the traditional values of couture – that’s how you achieve perfection.’ www.nicholasoakwellcouture.com

earthly beauty NeydhartiNg Moor SkiN & Body Care drawS oN Nature’S BeSt aNti-ageiNg propertieS to Stop the CloCk, SayS CHARLIE BYRNE photography Tif Hunter We’ve been optimistically slathering our skin with mud for thousands of years in the hope of harnessing its natural botanical properties. But, in 1525, Paracelsus, a pioneer of modern medicine, stumbled across a mud par excellence – the Peat of the Neydharting Moor, in central Austria. Before long, European nobility and Celtic priests were flocking to indulge in its healing qualities, renowned for their ability to remedy illness and enhance beauty. In recent times, Neydharting has been designated the only therapeutic medicinal moor in the world, and Neydharting Moor Skin & Body Care is the only brand to use its peat and peat water in its products. Dr Dennis L Johnson founded Neydharting Moor Skin & Body Care in the United States in 2005, and the range is now used in more than 35 exclusive spas in the USA and South Africa, including the Delaire Graff Spa in Stellenbosch. Spa Director Taffryn Kinsey firmly believes in its restorative properties: ‘Our clients are driven by visible results, and the products deliver impressive anti-ageing effects within just a few days’ use. The fact that there are so many active ingredients in each formula makes them highly effective at rejuvenating the skin.’ The Neydharting Moor was formed 30,000 years ago, when water pooled to create a lake brimming with healing herbs, flowers and roots, conjuring up a rare mix of plants. The peat and peat water of the moor contain 1,000 naturally sourced botanicals and 300 clinically approved anti-ageing properties – in fact, Neydharting Moor Skin & Body Care is the only skincare line certified by the Austrian Ministry of Health as having healing qualities. ‘We created the range to address all the needs of the skin, not merely mask them,’ says Dr Johnson. By working with nature, in combination with the best scientific advances in anti-ageing, Neydharting Moor Skin & Body Care has achieved what was previously considered impossible – shaving off the years without submitting to the scalpel. www.moorskincare.com; www.delaire.co.za

The Graff Leadership CenTre has beCome a beaCon of hope To The Thousands who have benefiTed from iTs resourCes

CHANGE FOR GOOD DisaDvantageD people in lesotho anD Botswana DescriBe how their lives are Being turneD rounD for the gooD, thanks to the work of the facet founDation worDs Maria Yacoob

napped with a wide smile and a baby on his lap, Mokhabelane Morahanye has a politician’s instinct for a good photo opportunity. But for Leribe’s newly appointed District Administrator, speaking with these young mothers is far more than a public relations exercise. In Lesotho, a country where AIDS has stolen swathes of the population, the conversations Mr Morahanye has with the residents of his province can literally become a matter of life or death. The young, charismatic former school principal knows that tackling the issues surrounding AIDS and promoting leadership are crucial to Lesotho’s future. ‘AIDS has devastated our country,’ says Morahanye sadly. ‘In this area of northern Lesotho, there was information about AIDS, but no ongoing support, which was what our youth needed. Knowledge without a support structure is not enough.’ Morahanye’s stories and observations belie his yearning for Lesotho to escape its poverty and suffering. ‘As I visit the young mothers group today, I see many young girls from my village – girls who

should not be pregnant or have babies as they are so young.’ And the spectre of death is still too present throughout his community. ‘I know many of the grandmothers in my village, and I have been to the funerals of their children.’ However, Morahanye has witnessed at first hand the changes the Graff Leadership Centre has brought to all generations of his community. Built in 2010 with funds from Mr Graff’s foundation FACET (For Africa’s Children Every Time), the Graff Leadership Centre provides a permanent home for local charity Help Lesotho. The building is the base for Help Lesotho’s residential and outreach programmes, which touch the lives of thousands of people. FACET also continues to fund the running of Help Lesotho’s leadership and grandmother programmes. The intensive leadership programme targets vulnerable youth. It focuses on health and social education, as well as teaching skills to improve job prospects. The grandmother programme reaches out to women whose children have died, leaving them with sole responsibility for bringing up their grandchildren. As well as offering bereavement and emotional support, the

HANDS-ON APPROACH District Administrator Mokhabelane Morahanye meets young mothers at the Graff Leadership Centre in Lesotho, opposite. Tshepang, a young Motswana and beneficiary of the FACET-funded Finding The Leader Within programme, at work in the Adam’s Apple dairy, right, and relaxing with a colleague, above

programme helps grandmothers become more self-sufficient by providing kits to start growing vegetables and herbs in gardens. The Graff Leadership Centre has become a beacon of hope to the thousands of people who have visited and benefited from its resources. ‘It is a special place for our people,’ confirms Morahanye. ‘Everyone is welcomed, free to think and express opinions. I am proud that it is located here.’ With FACET’s continuing support, Leribe’s future looks much brighter, Morahanye believes. ‘My vision is for Leribe to become an exemplar of what leadership is all about. We thank FACET Foundation for helping people to rise above their suffering. Help Lesotho has clear and comprehensive programmes, and its work at the Graff Leadership Centre plays a pivotal part in realising this vision.’ In Botswana, where the Graff Leadership Centre in Mochudi is now in its second year, farming

is not just a stable form of employment – it’s crucial to the country’s future. As Jameson Chihwai, manager of Adam’s Apple farm explains, ‘Food security is our big goal. In Botswana, we consume 700 tons of tomatoes a month. The majority are imported from South Africa, but we can produce this ourselves, as an industry.’ Adam’s Apple is a vital part of Botswana’s growing farm industry, selling vegetables and dairy produce to the horticultural market in Gabarone, and to a major grocery chain. But it also plays another important role, training apprentices from the FACET-funded Finding the Leader Within programme (run by Stepping Stones International from its Graff Leadership Centre) to be farmers of the future. This leadership programme targets vulnerable youth, particularly those who have been orphaned by AIDS, and provides emotional, social and academic support to help them become self-sufficient adults, and leaders in their local community. Initially, Adam’s Apple offered help to Stepping Stones International through donating fruit, then by sponsoring its first sexual abuse campaign. Then Leadership Coordinator, Nontombi Gungquisa, approached Jameson about taking on an apprentice from the FACET-funded leadership programme for vulnerable youth. ‘We agreed to take on a young man named Tshepang,’ says Jameson. ‘Ours is a mixed farm, so when Tshepang first arrived, I showed him round the greenhouse, the small stock, the open fields, the citrus orchard and the dairy.’ Tshepang showed most interest in the dairy, so Jameson taught him not only the day-to-day jobs of milking, feeding and cleaning, but the dairy science behind it. ‘By the end of the year-long mentorship programme, I was hoping Tshepang would be able to start his own dairy farm somewhere nearby so I could assist him,’ reveals Jameson. ‘But you need a lot of capital to set it up, so he has decided to start farming vegetables instead.’ Jameson is passionate about the importance of creating and mentoring Botswana’s leaders of tomorrow. ‘The Finding the Leader Within programme benefits the community a lot. We need to teach youngsters how to stand on their own. Youth like Tshepang can join up with others to start something of their own. It’s a good thing, it’s ongoing and we will accept more youth from this leadership programme.’ Such inspiring examples of lives being changed for the good illustrate how the FACET Foundation is helping people to help themselves to realise their dreams and ambitions – and turn disadvantage into advantage. www.facet-foundation.org

A WORD WITH… asia director arnaud bastien talks about Graff’s expansion into asia and the company’s perfect fit with the continent’s appetite for luxury Goods and appreciation of fine service words Joanne Glasbey

ith remarkable prescience, Laurence Graff made his first business trip to Asia – to Hong Kong and Japan – in the Seventies, armed with a suitcase full of jewels. He was the first Western jeweller to make such a rewarding journey. Some decades on, and now Graff Diamonds is looking east again and planning to expand its already extensive reach. As the world economy has changed so swiftly, it has responded to the swing to Asia with a clear, positive, strategy: expansion. This is being masterminded by Arnaud Bastien, Graff’s Asia director. ‘Asia is booming,’ Arnaud explains from his Hong Kong headquarters. ‘The elite tend to travel extensively within the region – and round the world. The pace in Asia is non-stop, 24-hour, and there’s an insatiable appetite for luxury goods. The continent’s momentum keeps on accelerating. Development in Asia is one of a kind.’ The rhythm of life in Asia is different to that in more sedate Europe or USA, Arnaud says. Its hectic pace means more Asian people are inclined to spoil themselves with upmarket goods and learn to appreciate – and expect – luxury. ‘Asia is acknowledged for its quality of service: the standard is much higher than anywhere else in the world,’ he adds. ‘In the best hotels, in top restaurants, even in airports or private residences,

EASTERN EXPANSION Graff’s elegant Hangzhou store opened in 2012 at the Hubin International Mall, opposite and this page, far left. Multishape white diamond necklace (Diamonds 65.75 cts), left. Ruby and diamond Butterfly watch set with 357 diamonds and 78 rubies, below

attention to the tiniest detail is the norm. This is a great base on which to grow luxury, as the services exist and peoples’ expectations are very high. We are exposed to luxury and living it every day.’ So it’s not at all surprising to Arnaud that a number of top-flight Asian-based hotel groups are opening in Europe. ‘The quality of Asian hotels is amazing when compared to many in the rest of the world. It’s not just the forensic attention to detail, but a higher staff ratio and rigorous training that is regarded as important. Everything is about the customer’s enjoyment of the experience.’ It is that vision that Arnaud brings to increasing Graff’s presence in Asia. The approach is confident, but considered: ‘Our first flagship stores in Hong Kong and Tokyo opened nearly a decade ago, even though we have operated in Asia since the early-Seventies,’ Arnaud recounts. ‘Then, in 2010, we entered Greater China, opening in Shanghai, then in Beijing, and Taiwan. More recently, we launched a store in Macau, a second in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing, in Shenyang in and also in Hangzhou. By the end of this summer, we will have 14 stores in Asia, which includes six in China. But we are still just scratching the surface.’ The company is now turning its attention to other Asian areas, Arnaud says: ‘We will be opening our first store in Seoul, South Korea, this summer, and a third store in Japan, in Osaka.’ There are countries ripe for exploration, such as Singapore, and maybe Thailand – and there is still the opportunity to open second or third stores,

even in Hong Kong – perhaps in the central area rather than Kowloon.’ It’s a whistle-stop tour around the map of Asia – and there are even more names to add to the itinerary: ‘Over the next five years, we can expect to have a network of 20 stores in Asia,’ Arnaud reports. The reason for the growth is simple, he explains: ‘There are more and more prosperous people in Asia and fewer and fewer diamonds in the world. In parallel, look back at the growth of the luxury watch market over the past 10 years and it has been phenomenal in Asia, and I think the next big thing is jewellery.’ This is no problem for Graff, he says. Anyone who spends over a half million dollars on a piece of jewellery is definitely looking on it as an investment or asset, he says. But where East and West differ, he offers, is in their different ways of spending their wealth. ‘In Europe, we look at buying secondary or third homes, and on retirement; in Asia, people think differently – that concept simply doesn’t exist.’ Creating the opportunities for clients to experience Graff is a large part of Arnaud’s job. ‘Just this month, in Asia, there are 10 discreet events:

exhibitions, private shows, private dinners. People are very eager to learn about Graff and we will educate them as enjoyably as possible. We find Asian people want to be exposed to luxury and want to know who is offering the best in each category. There is a feeling of positivity: even if their desires are aspirational today, they know they will be buying tomorrow and want to be well informed.’ Operating in a global economy, Graff doesn’t specifically offer different collections for Asia – there are fewer differences between the tastes of affluent Asians and Westerners than there might have been even a few years ago. ‘Customers are looking for the best, for rare, valuable items, and that is what we offer.’ But the market does have a few specificities: ‘Many Asians like red, as it represents good luck, so rubies are popular; and when they buy a diamond watch, they have a particular desire for big stones. They like others to see that they are wearing an impressive diamond watch. In Asia, people wear a $2m timepiece in a manner that you don’t see so readily in Europe.’ Graff is known all over the world for offering the best and serving the elite. ‘I like to say: we are the House of Graff, the world’s leading high-end jewellery brand. And globally we are perceived as such. People will always ask, where did you get that? In Asia, they love to say, “I bought my 15ct diamond from Graff.” We propose the best and we are known for the best, so if you buy from us, you get the best. It’s a spiral. We are at the pinnacle – the ultimate jeweller.’

Graff, ShenyanG The new store at the opulent Shenyang Jolie building features a contemporary Bohemia crystal chandelier, which perfectly complements the beautiful space. No detail has been spared to create an atmosphere that is the epitome of luxury

GRAFF stoRes woRldwide EUROPE

United Kingdom London UK Flagship store 6–8 New Bond Street London W1S 3SJ Tel: +44 20 7584 8571 11 Sloane Street London SW1X 9LE Tel: +44 20 7201 4120 monaco monte carlo Hôtel de Paris Place du Casino MC 98000 Monte Carlo Tel: +377 97 70 43 10 France courchevel Rue du Rocher 73120 Courchevel 1850 Tel: +33 4 79 24 59 12 Hôtel Les Airelles Chalet de Pierres Hôtel Palace des Neiges Tel: +33 6 80 86 20 39 SwitzerLand geneva 29 Rue du Rhône 1204 Geneva Tel: +41 22 819 6060

gstaad Grand Hotel Park 29 Wispilenstrasse CH 3780 Gstaad Tel: +41 33 744 9700 The Alpina Gstaad Alpinastrasse 23 CH 3780 Gstaad Tel: +41 33 744 7480 rUSSia moscow Tretiakovsky Proezd, 5 109012 Moscow Tel: +7 495 933 3385 Luxury Village Barvikha 143083 Moscow Tel: +7 495 225 8867 TSUM department store 2 ul. Petrovka 125009 Moscow Tel: +8 800 500 8000 UKraine Kiev 12/2/3 Gorodetskogo Street 01001 Kiev Tel: +38 044 278 7557

NORTH AMERICA new York 710 Madison Avenue New York 10065 Tel: +1 212 355 9292 Bal Harbour 9700 Collins Avenue Bal Harbour Florida 33154 Tel: +1 305 993 1212 chicago 103 East Oak Street Chicago Illinois 60611 Tel: +1 312 604 1000 Las Vegas Wynn Las Vegas 3131 Las Vegas Blvd South Las Vegas Nevada 89109 Tel: +1 702 940 1000 Palm Beach 221 Worth Avenue Palm Beach Florida 33480 Tel: +1 561 355 9292 San Francisco 237 Post Street San Francisco California 94108 Tel: +1 415 926 7000

in selected SaKS stores: SAKS 5th Avenue, New York Beverly Hills, California Naples, Florida Tyson’s Corner, Virginia

AFRICA SoUtH aFrica Stellenbosch Delaire Graff Estate Helshoogte Pass Stellenbosch 7600 Tel: +27 21 885 8160

THE MIDDLE EAST dUBai The Burj Al Arab Dubai Tel: +971 4 330 7717 The Dubai Mall Dubai Tel: +971 4 339 9795

ASIA cHina Beijing The Peninsula Beijing 8 Goldfish Lane Wangfujing Beijing 100006 Tel: +86 10 6513 6690

China World Hotel Level 1 1 Jianguomenwai Avenue Beijing 100004 Hangzhou Hubin Yintai Centre 19-1 Hubin Road Hangzhou 310006 Tel: +86 571 8708 2281 Hong Kong The Peninsula Hong Kong Salisbury Road Kowloon Hong Kong SAR Tel: +852 2735 7666 The Ritz Carlton Hong Kong Level 103 International Commerce Centre 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon Hong Kong Tel: +852 3125 1570 macau Wynn Macau Shop No. 1 Rue Cidade de Sintra Nape, Macau Tel: +853 2878 3077 Shanghai The Peninsula Shanghai Shop L1 O 32 Zhongshan Dong Yi Road The Bund Shanghai 200002 Tel: +86 21 6321 6660

IFC Pudong Shop L1-36 Phase II, Shanghai IFC 8 Century Avenue Shanghai 200120 Tel: +86 21 5015 6013 Shenyang Shenyang Jolie 211 Qingnian Street Shenyang 110015 JaPan tokyo The Peninsula Tokyo 1-8-1 Yurakucho Chiyoda-ku Tokyo 100-0006 Tel: +81 3 6267 0811 Isetan Shinjuku 4th Floor 3-14-1 Shinjuku Tokyo 160-0022 Tel: +81 3 6457 8633 taiwan taipei The Grand Formosa Regent Taipei 2nd Floor 41 Chung Shan North Road Section 2 Taipei Tel: +886 2 2511 5865

OPENINg SOON Seoul, South Korea abu dhabi, Uae

E S TAT E Tel: +27 (0)21 885 8160 路 Email: reservations@delaire.co.za HELSHOOGTE PASS, STELLENBOSCH, SOUTH AFRICA www.delaire.co.za

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