{"id":5445,"date":"2016-07-06T17:17:32","date_gmt":"2016-07-06T15:17:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/?p=5445"},"modified":"2016-07-23T11:01:26","modified_gmt":"2016-07-23T09:01:26","slug":"lorenz-baumer-vendome-paris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/en\/lorenz-baumer-vendome-paris","title":{"rendered":"Lorenz B\u00e4umer"},"content":{"rendered":"

The most elegant square in that most elegant of cities, the Place Vend\u00f4me has long been home to Paris\u2019s most celebrated jewellery boutiques and workshops, from Boucheron and Chaumet (the official jeweller to Napoleon and Josephine, no less), to Van Cleef & Arpels and Cartier. Alongside such venerable names, however, the square also plays host to a new generation of jewellers who are bringing some free-spirited fun and renewed creativity to the area.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Prime among them is Lorenz B\u00e4umer, who opened his salon and workshop at 19 Place Vend\u00f4me in June 2013. Although it\u2019s informed by an intimate knowledge of and respect for the great jewellers of the past, B\u00e4umer\u2019s work is, at times, breezily freewheeling and irreverent and often gloriously colourful. Equally well, when the occasion demands, B\u00e4umer can turn his skilled hand to heart-stoppingly lovely and coolly sophisticated pieces that are literally and figuratively fit for royalty (one of his most celebrated commissions was a wedding tiara for Princess Charl\u00e8ne of Monaco).
\nB\u00e4umer, who was born in the United States to a German father and French mother, has lived in Paris since 1995 and, before becoming a jeweller, studied engineering and architecture. Here he talks to us about his work and career and shares the names of his favourite shops and restaurants in and around the Place Vend\u00f4me.<\/p>\n

\"Charl\u00e8ne
Charl\u00e8ne de Monaco and Lorenz B\u00e4umer by Karl Lagerfield<\/div><\/div>
\"tiara
The Tiara created by Lorenz B\u00e4umer for Princess Charl\u00e8ne of Monaco’s wedding<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

How would you describe your work for someone who\u2019s not seen it?<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s jewellery that\u2019s very creative I hope, very innovative, inspired by architecture and poetry and most of it, at least half of it, is one of a kind. My stuff is definitely not on the soft side of things and most of my clients are buying pieces for themselves and they\u2019re often people who are buying contemporary art. So they\u2019re daring, bold, ambitious people and not frightened to buy what they like.<\/p>\n

You once said, \u201cI believe in jewels rather than jewellery.\u201d What did you mean by that?<\/h4>\n

I meant that I don\u2019t have any interest in jewellery as a status symbol or something to enhance someone\u2019s image. So for me it\u2019s never about the value of a stone. What matters to me in the jewellery I design is to give an interesting meaning to whatever I do. So I don\u2019t have any boundaries when I design, whether that\u2019s about materials \u2013 I use titanium or ceramic \u2013 or about colour. I\u2019m very comfortable mixing colours and I love the joyful, happy feel of bright colours. Also, we really don\u2019t want to repeat things we\u2019ve already done a gazillion times.<\/p>\n

\"ring
Chardon ring<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"colour
Jane Dragibus ring<\/a><\/div><\/div>
\"conception
Surf ring<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"Bracelet
Mikado Aquarelle Bracelet<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"ring
Coupelle Tourmaline Ring<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

Do you think of your work as feminine?<\/h4>\n

The image of women constantly changes, so I want to help my customers be comfortable with who they are and buy something that\u2019s meaningful to them. To me that\u2019s femininity too. And I like the idea that our identities aren\u2019t fixed. We have a line called Good Girl\/Bad Girl, for example, which lets people play around with that idea. One of the items is a pendant that you can flip around, depending on how you feel. One way is a gun and the other way is the dove, so it\u2019s war and peace.<\/p>\n

\"necklace
Glacier necklace<\/a> <\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"pendant
Good girl \/ Bad girl Pendant<\/a><\/div><\/div>
\"pendant
Good girl \/ Bad girl Pendant<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"jewellery
Pink L\u00e9gume Bracelet<\/a><\/div><\/div>
\"Jeweller
Cascade ring<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"diamant
Meteorite Ring<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

You also have a line using pieces of meteorites.<\/h4>\n

Yes, it\u2019s a chunk of a meteorite that we\u2019ve cut to our liking and integrate into the jewellery. It\u2019s incredible to think you might be wearing something that has travelled for millions of years through space. There\u2019s something very poetic about it. And I love the idea that jewellery can surprise and challenge. It doesn\u2019t all have to be about white diamonds.<\/p>\n

Given that your work isn\u2019t particularly traditional, did you have any doubts about opening a shop on the Place Vend\u00f4me, which seems to be a bastion of tradition?<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s historically in the centre of Paris, and it\u2019s always been the place for jewellery, for designing and making it, ever since Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Boucheron moved there at the end of the 19th century, and everyone who really matters is there on the square or on the Rue de la Paix. And [laughs] I was always was a little bit crazy, so I just went for it. I mean, I always wanted to design the best jewellery, have the best place, have the best clients…<\/p>\n

Many people find it quite intimidating going into the sort of expensive shops that you find on the Place Vend\u00f4me. What atmosphere does your shop have?<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s more a salon. I wanted it to be a place where you can discover things you\u2019ve never seen before and be surprised and get out of your daily routine. I also wanted it to be a place where you would feel at home, which might be a bit contradictory, but a place you would feel so great that you don\u2019t really want to leave, where there\u2019s always something new and interesting, where there\u2019d be an encounter with a designer and somehow the by-product of that encounter would be that you\u2019d buy a piece of jewellery that feels really special and full of meaning.<\/p>\n

\"salon
An intimate salon for jewellery lovers<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"Jeweller
The “surf hut”<\/div><\/div>
\"shop<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"salon<\/div><\/div>
\"inspiration<\/div><\/div>
\"jewellery
Lorenz B\u00e4umer’s cabinet of inspiration<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"courtyard
H\u00f4tel d’Evreux 19, Place Vend\u00f4me: Lorenz B\u00e4umer’s workshop and salon<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

Looking back, do you remember the moment in life when you decided to be jeweller?<\/h4>\n

It was when I was a kid I suppose. My parents were diplomats and travelled a lot and my mom would wear jewels to go to parties in the evening. So one moment she\u2019d be my mom and next second she\u2019d be a princess from a fairytale because she was wearing all this shiny, glittery jewellery. So that kind of got me interested in having that magic touch that changes women into princesses, and that thing, that magic touch, is jewellery.<\/p>\n

\"watercolour
Ile au Tr\u00e9sor Bracelet<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Yet you trained to be an engineer?<\/h4>\n

I wanted to make my parents happy and in France one of the most sought-after things that you can do is go to engineering school. But once I had that diploma I just said \u201cWell, let me have a little bit of fun and design some fine jewellery.\u201d And it went from there.<\/p>\n

\"Lorenz
Eclipse Ring<\/a><\/div><\/div>
\"Joaillerie
Scarab\u00e9e black & white brooch<\/a><\/div><\/div>
\"Colour
Galil\u00e9e ring<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

You were born in the United States. Where do you call home?<\/h4>\n

Europe is home. I feel European. As for Paris, I think it\u2019s probably the most extraordinary city in the world. I love the inspiration you can get from the city. Everyone is trying to excel in one way or another and there are so many people who are passionate about things, whether it be cheese or wine, art, architecture, fashion.<\/p>\n

Whereabouts do you live in Paris?<\/h4>\n

I live in the 9th, next to the Opera, which is great because it\u2019s within walking distance of the office.<\/p>\n

So where do you go to find inspiration in the city?<\/h4>\n

I could name all sorts of places in the city, museums and so on, but honestly [laughs], the shower is a great place. It\u2019s the one place where the phone isn\u2019t going to ring, no one is going to bother you. Being inspired for me is all about creating something that\u2019s out of time, and the water has a very relaxed and mellowing effect and sort of washes away all the things that are preoccupying you and getting in the way of your creative energy.<\/p>\n

\"nature<\/p>\n

More information<\/h4>\n

Lorenz B\u00e4umer Paris
\nwww.lorenzbaumer.com<\/a><\/p>\n

\n
Lorenz\u2019s Favourite Places<\/h5>\n
<\/p>\n

Corthay<\/a>
\n1 rue Volney, 75002
\nPhone: 01 42 61 08 89
\nContemporary shoemaker. \u201cIt\u2019s quite wonderful. I have 4 or 5 pairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

La Maison du Whisky<\/a>
\n20 rue d\u2019Anjou, 75008
\nPhone: 01 42 65 03 16
\nOne of the finest selections of whisky in the world.<\/p>\n

Librarie Gaglignani<\/a>
\n224 rue de Rivoli, 75001
\nPhone: 01 42 60 76 07
\nEnglish and French books. \u201cThey give amazing advice and recommendations and they have a wonderful jewellery section.\u201d<\/p>\n

La Manufacture de Chocolat Alain Ducasse
\n40 rue de la Roquette, 75011
\nPhone: 01 48 05 82 86<\/p>\n

Lavinia
\n3-5 boulevard de la Madeleine 75001
\nPhone: 01 42 97 20 20
\nFine wines.<\/p>\n

Plume et Bille
\n38 rue de l\u2019Arcade, 75008
\nPhone: 01 42 65 57 92
\nFine fountain pens and more. \u201cI write every day with one of their pens.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

Goust
\n10 rue Volney, 75002
\nPhone: 01 40 15 20 30
\nModern French cuisine. \u201cIt\u2019s a super cool little restaurant run by the best sommelier in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paparazzi
\n6 square de l\u2019Op\u00e9ra-Louis Jouvet, 75009
\nPhone: 01 40 07 92 56
\n\u201cThe best pizzas ever. My children love it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kinugawa
\n9 rue du Mont Thabor, 75001
\nPhone: 01 42 60 65 07
\nJapanese cuisine. \u201cIt\u2019s fusion Japanese food, very innovative, and in a beautiful building.<\/p>\n

Ch\u00e2teau de Chantilly
\n60500 Chantilly
\n\u201cJust half an hour outside Paris. A really unique place with cool art and the Living Museum of Horses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Palais de Tokyo
\n13 avenue du President Wilson, 75116
\n\u201cIt does an incredible job of showing what\u2019s going on with contemporary art.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>

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The Place Vend\u00f4me has long been home to Paris\u2019s most celebrated jewellery boutiques and workshops. However, the square also plays host to a new generation of jewellers. Prime among them is Lorenz B\u00e4umer.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5476,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"amp_status":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5445"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5445"}],"version-history":[{"count":380,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6320,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5445\/revisions\/6320"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.book-a-flat.com\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}