Karina – Adoring Bella Hadid

Chopard owns many facets of the jewellery world, from showcasing its spectacular High Jewellery creations on the world’s most glamorous stages to embodying a myriad of refined and enduring collections that are no less precious. One such collection is the Ice Cube, introduced in 1999 by Chopard’s Co-President and Artistic Director Caroline Scheufele through a watch epitomising a pure shape. Since then, the Ice Cube collection has continued to evolve in a perpetual dialogue with light.

Anchored by a central cube motif, the Ice Cube collection is symbolised by geometric perfection and magnified by the light bouncing off its facets. Beyond mere jewellery, the collection is a contemporary statement, defined by a minimalist aesthetic that reflects Bauhaus principles. A blend of simplicity and functionality, the Ice Cube’s highly graphic lines use only essential elements: light, shape and resistant materials.

The Ice Cube’s design language is enunciated by identically repeated cube motifs, discreetly enhanced by four perfectly symmetrical and subtly faceted edges. This is where the magic begins — through these delicate surfaces, light is refracted and the jewellery’s brilliance is amplified. Yet, beneath the Ice Cube’s apparent simplicity lies a complex interplay of high technology and craftsmanship.

A marvel of engineering, the Ice Cube is the product of six years of research and development. Its highly technical machining involves diamond-equipped tools to machine and perfectly mill the taut lines of the precious metal to the nearest hundredth of a centimetre. After further buffing with a dedicated pad, the mirror-polished surface emanates with the ultimate brilliance. This phase and the diamond paving on the gem-set sections are done exclusively by hand.

Chopard’s commitment to sustainability is another facet of the Ice Cube story. By using ethical gold as early as 2017 to produce jewellery, the Maison has demonstrated that luxury can be synonymous with responsibility. It is a move that resonates with a growing consumer consciousness and the fact that the Maison used Ice Cube to spearhead its sustainable endeavours reinforces the Ice Cube’s status as a symbol of progressive luxury.

This season, Chopard is spotlighting the streamlined sophistication of Ice Cube in a sizzling campaign, Sculpted by Light, where supermodel Bella Hadid is portrayed as the collection’s modern muse. British fashion photographer and director Charlotte Wales has crafted a visual symphony where Hadid’s striking beauty and the Ice Cube collection’s sleek incandescence become intertwined in a dance of light and shadow.

The campaign’s aesthetic departs from the traditional tropes of luxury, showcasing an abstract urban landscape of a nocturnal skyline juxtaposed against lit-up building windows. This artistic narrative highlights the power and purity of the Ice Cube collection where the symbiosis of light and jewellery shines as the star of the show.