A STROKE OF ARTISTIC GENIUS
Written By: Nathan Irvine
A Montblanc collection fit for the Louvre.
There are few things in life that are as simple and pleasurable as acquiring a new pen. In a world overloaded with digital products and everything existing in the cloud, the physical and visceral swooshes, loops, and angles you can make on parchment is still a thrill.
While Montblanc is synonymous with many things, including leather accessories and watches, it’s exceptional writing instruments where it stands above the rest. The Maison’s Masters of Art collectors’ line, which pays tribute to artistic luminaries such as Vincent van Gogh and Gustav Klimt, continues with an homage to French artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
Known for his vibrant and joyful style that stunningly captured feminine sensuality, Renoir was a trailblazer for the Impressionist movement. With bold colors, being a manipulator of light and expert in creating a sense of movement in his pieces, Renoir’s work is unmistakable.
Montblanc pays tribute to Renoir’s unique style with this limited-edition collection that spans five bespoke writing instruments – each one as special as the last.
Montblanc Masters of Art | Courtesy of Montblanc
LIMITED EDITION 4810
It all starts within the olive groves of Renoir’s beloved Les Collettes in southern France. The Limited Edition 4810 captures his deep affinity for nature. Crafted from olive wood and daubed with hand-painted green, rose, yellow and blue, it’s just like the colors of the master’s palette.
The shape of the instrument is inspired by the traditional pencils used by 19th-century painters, while the cap is crowned with an ultramarine resin emblem, recalling Renoir’s famous quip: “One morning, one of us, lacking black, used blue: Impressionism was born.”
But the details don’t stop at color. A gold-coated clip shaped like twin paintbrushes evokes Renoir’s shift from meticulous lines to fluid strokes. There’s another level of Montblanc’s dedication to handcrafted excellence as the solid gold nib is etched with the graceful folding fan motif seen in many of Renoir’s female portraits. On the cone, a silverpoint tip nods to his remarkable drawing techniques – a feature that makes it across every piece in this stunning collection.
Limited Edition 888 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 161 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 161 | Courtesy of Montblanc
LIMITED EDITION 888
Montblanc ventures back to Renoir’s early years as a porcelain painter for the Limited Edition 888. This piece is a tribute to the finesse he would demonstrate in bringing the porcelain to life.
The cap contains a signature flower motif as painted by Renoir and is completed with a solid yellow gold frame. Intricate Louis XVI engravings also adorn the cap and barrel, showcasing the trademark and exceptional work of 19th-century French silversmiths.
Its platinum-coated cap top ring is engraved with ‘1854’, a significant date for Renoir, who began his porcelain-painting apprenticeship that year.
To finish, the silverpoint tip contrasts wonderfully with the cone’s solid gold and platinum, while the Montblanc emblem is made of mother-of-pearl and splashed with blue hues. It is a delight to behold.
LIMITED EDITION 161
The Limited Edition 161 pays homage to Renoir’s ‘Période Nacrée’, or ‘pearly period’, when lightness reigned and his palette turned much softer, with white and rose tints as opposed to bolder colors.
Here, Renoir’s Woman with a Hat is paid tribute through the barrel’s mother-of-pearl which reflects the light in a similar way to his famous painting. The sterling silver cap also contains an intricate version of the painting on it too.
On the cap top ring, you’ll find the year 1888 – the start of Renoir’s pearly period. Look closely and you’ll see ‘phi’, the Greek letter that represents the golden ratio (read: the scientific positioning for true balance and beauty). There’s also an impossibly small bouquet of flowers – another hallmark of Renoir’s body of work.
LIMITED EDITION 92
Few works embody Renoir’s joy like Luncheon of the Boating Party, and that’s where the Limited Edition 92 takes its inspiration. ‘92’ refers to the limited number of pieces and 1892, the year his Two Young Girls at the Piano was sold to the Musée du Luxembourg – the first time an Impressionist was exhibited in a national museum.
Montblanc weaves a solid gold braid pattern on the cap that conjures images of the straw hats from Luncheon of the Boating Party. Further cues have been taken throughout the writing instrument, with the hand-painted lacquer inlays on the solid gold barrel reflecting the awning that can be seen flapping in the breeze in the famous piece.
The Montblanc emblem in mother-of-pearl rests in light brown Kalahari Jasper, evoking the warmth and merriment of the scene in Luncheon of the Boating Party. The cone and sketching tip are delivered in solid gold and offer a link between Renoir and the collector.
LIMITED EDITION 8
A piece dedicated to Renoir’s shift from Impressionism to conventional, the Limited Edition 8, is an ode to The Great Bathers and his more precise phase. Intricately hand-painted and engraved using the Bulino technique, this creation boasts thousands of precision-cut dots and lines forming a figure bathed in golden light. Framed in gold, set with brilliant-cut diamonds, and crowned with a Montblanc diamond of exceptional clarity, it’s a piece of art on its own.
The collection is completed with a notebook that features a recreation of the 1916 Landscape on the cover, deep purple ink in a classic Montblanc glass ink bottle and a pair of steel cufflinks with sodalite and mother-of-pearl flourishes.
Montblanc continues to celebrate the visceral feel of writing in unparalleled ways. And with this homage to Renoir, you’re teleported back to a simpler time of real and raw creativity with every swoosh of the pen.
Limited Edition 92 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 92 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 8 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 8 | Courtesy of Montblanc
Limited Edition 8 | Courtesy of Montblanc
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