DISCOVER THE NEW CARAN D’ACHE VIDEO DEDICATED TO HAUTE ÉCRITURE, HIGHLIGHTING ITS CENTURY-OLD KNOW-HOW AND CALLING ON THE PARTICIPATION OF ITS AMBASSADOR, THE SWISS WRITER JON MONNARD

Caran d’Ache presents a new know-how video, this time dedicated to Haute Écriture. The Swiss company draws an analogy between the writing process and the manufacture of exceptional instruments in order to highlight the precious expertise and precision work of its master craftsmen.

 

In its new film, Caran d’Ache explores a brand-new style – a writer alone with a blank page, alone with himself. For this video, the company called on its Haute Écriture ambassador since 2019, Jon Monnard, the Swiss author of “Et à la fois je savais que je n’étais pas magnifique. However, while the presence of the novelist sets the framework for the story, it is the company’s tradition and love for outstanding creations that are placed centre stage.

Far from the syndrome of a writer in search for inspiration, Caran d’Ache cleverly draws parallels between the creation of an accomplished work and the manufacture of Haute Écriture instruments. The author’s pen hesitates, questions, writes, corrects then starts again. The craftsman questions, weighs and assesses. Precise hands cut, press, polish and engrave noble materials. With the superfluous pushed to one side, only the essentials remain: form and beauty. A fluidity between two inseparable stories, showcasing the carefully preserved know-how of Caran d’Ache, which has dreamed up and produced Haute Écriture masterpieces since 1930.

Through its expertise and mastery of precious materials, the Swiss brand develops and manufactures, in its Geneva workshops, its Haute Écriture instruments, which combine aesthetics, comfort and the nobility of materials, as well as its Écriture and Beaux-Arts instruments. These are worlds that cannot be dissociated from each other, as the exceptional colour expertise of the company enables it to create instruments in a multitude of different shades.

Gold, platinum, rhodium and Chinese lacquer are brought to life in the Ecridor, Léman, Varius collections as well as in numerous outstanding items; collections that call on trades and professions that have become rare in the modern era.

Guillochage techniques produce subtle plays of light and shadow on the bodies of the Haute Écriture instruments. A diamond guillochage offers a sophisticated sparkling decoration while minute details can be engraved using laser technology to create a more shallow, matt effect. Chiselling and milling make for deeper cuts; the former is ideal for slender, angular motifs while the latter produces complex, rounded patterns.

Throughout the process, the materials are polished in precise, meticulous movements creating a soft feel, writing comfort and a sparkling design. Polishing is the final touch in the production process, brightening the instrument and providing its ultimate radiance.

Just as demanding, lacquer requires remarkable precision. In its preparation and application and the choice of gloss, matt or satin varnish, the master craftsman’s know-how is invaluable. This is even more the case in the ancestral art of Chinese lacquer. Drawn from the sap of the Chinese lacquer tree (Rhus verniciflua), this precious, organic and living material is painstakingly worked and applied in numerous layers to the components of the writing instruments. Carefully handed down from generation to generation, Caran d’Ache is one of the only companies in the West to master the art of working Chinese lacquer, a skill it has applied for over 30 years.

Assembled by hand, the Haute Écriture instruments from Caran d’Ache are perfect companions for those already owned by aficionados of attractive writing and strong lines, sharing passion and fostering emotions.