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Dangerous Liaisons

2023
Here comes a story of power and revenge, of cruelty and manipulation.

On the eve of the French Revolution, in the opulent reign of Louis XVI, two heartless nobles embark on a duel of seduction from which no one will emerge unscathed and whose machinations, recorded in epistolary form by Choderlos de Laclos (1782) and later embodied by John Malkovich and Glenn Close, are the protagonists of our bet for this season.

Here comes a story of power and revenge, of cruelty and manipulation, captured through 24 props that constitute papiroga’s greatest aesthetic challenge to date. Scene by scene, piece by piece, the collection reveals the dark intentions of the Vicomte de Valmont and the Marquise de Merteuil, two former lovers, cynical and selfish, driven by an irrepressible desire to deceive.

What begins as a provocation, as a capricious game, soon becomes a sick rivalry, a pathological hatred that will sweep away in its spiral of destruction whoever is put in front of it: be it the innocent Cécile or her mother, Madame de Volanges, devoted to the practice of virtue; the Chevalier Danceny, Madame de Rosemonde or The Présidente de Tourvel, exemplary in her courageous fight against temptation.

We present here an erotic chronicle, a sharp satire of a court buried in secrets, each one more scandalous than the last, under which shines, thanks to the unprecedented brilliance of pearls, a stunning selection of earrings and necklaces, rings and bracelets, majestic and delicate, sensual and dazzling, in an extreme exercise in decanting the soul of the Baroque on the most polished designs.

Floral, organic motifs, inspired by brocades and courtly tapestries, will emerge from a colour palette that reflects the evolution of the characters as the plot unfolds. Thus, the initial passion of the Marquise de Merteuil is matched by reds and pinks that will fade into pure whites and silver once disenchantment cools the ardour. A similar line to that exhibited by Cécile, whose youthful candour we crystallise in daring yet discreet pieces. Madame Tourvel also belongs to this placid range until Valmont insists on dyeing her days with the colour of lust. And for the latter, prince of debauchery, spirit of depravity, the navy blue, defiant in its subjugating darkness.

And behind the intrigues and dalliances, at the very heart of the story, a merciless criticism of the high aristocracy, decadent and self-absorbed, given over to appearances, leisure and frivolity, in an already decadent world in which nothing is what it seems and against which the popular insurrection will rise up, irremediably and bloodily.

Whether it’s reading his letters or looking at his unforgettable stills, take the opportunity to enjoy this dangerous collection now before heads roll. You have been warned…