CONVERSATION
WITH CHARLOTTE RAMPLING

Emilien: Hi Charlotte, we’re about to release the campaign we did with you, wearing the bespoke ear cuff, a very special project inside the Maison - how do you feel?

Charlotte: It is the culmination of a beautiful journey we’ve taken together. When you asked me to be part of this new chapter in your life, I was immediately touched. I loved the idea of the jewel you imagined for me.

Emilien: When we first met, I was stepping away from law and starting to work with jewellery. You mentioned by then that you don't really wear jewellery in your daily life.

Charlotte: I have always worn jewels that carry a special meaning. I’ve never bought jewellery for myself. The jewels were always given to me, often by the men I loved, or received as gifts, jewels with great simplicity. I suppose in the end, what I love most is being given jewellery.

Emilien: In my initial design, there were more diamonds. To make the piece feels more in tune with your personality, we decided to keep only the three main ones.

Charlotte: I immediately saw them as the three foundations of a personality aligned with my own. They are present, grounded, standing strong. But what fascinated me was the story behind the shape of the ear cuff: it resonated within, it mirrored my personality. I saw the piece as symbolic of a tribe I could belong to, as a warrior. I felt it could give me the strength we need, in a world that asks so much of us.

Emilien: Yes, it’s a subtle form of protection. I remember that during one of our conversations, you referred to the ear cuff as your armure.

Charlotte: Yes, but not an armour that repels. It’s a piece that draws you in, that makes you want to look closer. The design also reveals your sensitivity: it is powerful yet delicate. The piece is bespoke, it covers almost my entire ear and when I’m wearing it, I don’t feel it anymore. It’s magical. You need to know how to place it… for now, you’re still the one helping me. I promise soon I’ll be able to do it on my own! All this is a pleasant form of ritual.

Emilien: It was wonderful to start from the initial sketch and gradually shape the ear cuff, step by step, to personally suit your ear. Each fitting was then a unique moment during which, little by little, the piece became yours.

Charlotte: I believe women long for this kind of experience. It’s like receiving a haute couture dress, made on you and for you. You take the time to really look at it, and it develops a creative complicity with the creator. Spending time with you placed us in a different sphere, almost outside of time.

Emilien: Last summer you were filming Dune: Part Three, where you play the Reverend Mother - a character who embodies both spiritual authority and quiet wisdom. It is a duality we often see in your roles: strength and sensitivity. It also reflects your own presence - famous, yet deeply enigmatic.

Charlotte: Cinema asks me to explore this challenging duality and your jewel embodies the essence of this. If we don’t take up the challenges, we stay within our comfort zone. To evolve, we need to step outside of it. You’ve really done that.

Emilien: It was stronger than me – like a magnet, almost vital. I felt the need to work with my hands and jewellery came to me almost naturally. I like the idea of having multiple lives, of letting the unknown emerge.

Charlotte: And then something very unexpected happened.

Emilien: An extraordinary coincidence brought us to the Venice Film Festival.

Charlotte: Jim Jarmusch’s film, Father, Mother, Sister, Brother, (which I happened to be in!), was selected for the official competition.

Emilien: You challenged me. “Make your own way there, arrive at my hotel and place the piece on my ear!”.

Charlotte: Everything was naturally falling into place. Things flowed with a rare ease. The jewel found itself on my ear on the red carpet, it was like a fairy tale. And the cherry on the cake, the film won the Golden Lion, a deeply human film, poetry in motion.