Her name creates a real buzz at auctions, and her resolutely modern, audacious and refined creations are snapped up at gold prices. Suzanne Belperron enjoyed great renown in her day, designing jewelry for high society and celebrities, but never signed her pieces. Once forgotten, it was only a few years later that her work was once again recognized. A look back at the career of a talented designer.
The promising beginnings of Suzanne Belperron
Madeleine Suzanne Vuillerme was born in 1900 in the Jura region of France. Suzanne began drawing at an early age, and was encouraged by her mother to study at Besançon. She won a prize there in 1918 for the design of a pendant watch. The following year, she was hired by the Maison Boivin in Paris as a designer.
She quickly made a name for herself, and her early work was immediately much admired, especially by Jeanne Boivin (widow of René Boivin). At just 23, she was named co-director of the company. That same year, she married Jean Belperron.
Suzanne Belperron's independence and consecration
After 13 years with Maison Boivin, she decided to leave in 1932, to be replaced by Juliette Moutard. She joined Maison Herz in 1933, where she enjoyed total creative freedom. Success was immediate, and Suzanne Belperron’s creations were snapped up by high society. Her jewelry was featured on the covers of major magazines such as Vogue. Couturiers like Elsa Schiaparelli added her jewelry to their outfits. Suzanne Belperron was approached by everyone from Paul Flato to Tiffany, but each time she was categorically refused.
Suzanne Belperron draws much of her inspiration from nature and the play of colors it offers her. She also has a passion for foreign cultures. She has a certain talent for combining colors and stones, and works with unusual materials for jewelry, such as carnelian, rock crystal and chalcedony. The artist creates bold, innovative jewels that she refuses to sign, as she rightly considers her style to be her signature.
A jeweler in wartime
However, during the Occupation, Bernard Herz, of Jewish origin, was arrested and narrowly saved thanks to the intervention of Suzanne Belperron. Suzanne Belperron took over the management of the company under the various laws of the time. She was in turn arrested and accused of concealing a Jewish business. Bernard Herz was again arrested and deported to the Drancy camp, then to Auschwitz. Suzanne Belperron was released after providing proof of her origins.
After the war, she set up a new company with Bernard Herz’s son, with salons where she received clients by appointment only, in order to adapt her creations as closely as possible to the style of her customers. Her customers were almost all members of high society, wealthy clients who continued to flock to her creations. In 1963, she was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur. A few years later, her husband died, and she decided to close the company, but continued to work on her own account to satisfy the demands of her loyal customers, who had become close friends over the years. She died at the age of 82 by accident in her bath.
The rediscovery of the Suzanne Belperron archives
With no heir, she bequeathed her estate to a close friend, who honoured his commitment by concealing her entire archive, leading people to believe for many years that it had been destroyed. In 2007, the new heir discovered the existence of these archives, which had been abandoned since 1983. This discovery was then entrusted to Olivier Baroin, a renowned jewelry expert, who scrutinized every document in order to bring Madame Belperron’s work back into the spotlight. He will also participate in the writing of a book retracing the life and work of a genius creator.
Remerciements pour les visuels : Olivier Baroin et Philippine Dupré la Tour
