Hermès Wow double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020 collection. Courtesy Hermès
To own a Hermès silk scarf, whether it is a purchase from a boutique or a gift handed down from mother to daughter, is a moment of pride for any woman of a certain taste and sophistication. It is an investment not just in style, but in innovation, craft, and unbridled joie de vivre. Take the “Wow” double face scarf featured above and below. Designed by Ugo Bienvenu, it features the “Hermès woman.” She fearlessly crosses Paris on land and water on the River Seine. Drawn on a double face scarf, a play of translation and color is featured.
Hermès Wow double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020 collection. Courtesy Hermès
“At Hermès, if invention is a matter of ideas, innovation derives from gesture. Looking more closely (with a magnifying glass) or from a great distance (through the telescope of history), we quickly realize that innovation is above all a matter of research, experimentation, movement, travel, encounters, and, therefore, of chance, of lucky accidents, of productive mistakes,” says Pierre-Alexis Dumas, Hermès artistic director. He upholds collective intelligence at Hermès, the maison‘s tradition, after all, is to constantly create.
Hermès Della Cavalleria Favolosa double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020 collection. Courtesy Hermès
Hermès Della Cavalleria Favolosa double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020 collection. Courtesy Hermès
Each Hermès scarf tells a story, while the double face scarf invites a new dimension. Take the Della Cavalleria, featured here, it is one of the most extraordinary stories of cavalry in existence. Written by Georg Engelhard von Löhneysen, it was published in Bavaria at the very beginning of the XVII century. This work, conserved in the collection of Emile Hermès, is illustrated with baroque engravings, and presents German carriages, fabulous creatures, and richly adorned horses. The scarf’s illustrator, Virginie Jamin, pushes the envelope of extravagance even further by assembling horses and fantastical beings with a dose of humor; a horse plays with a yoyo, and a creature tries its foot at badminton.
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For over a century, Hermès has created original products that start from necessity, and marry elegance and artisanship. Silk scarves have been both admired and used by women and men since time immortal. In 1937, the scarves signed Hermès were created using woodblocks. One side was colored until the dyes seeped through to the other side. The year would mark a technical breakthrough however signalling the printing of different colors on both sides of the delicate silk scarf. A “Eureka” moment, its secret is guarded by its artisans. Made in France and enjoyed the world over by purveyors of excellence.
Hermès Pani La Shar Pawnee double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020. Courtesy Hermès
Hermès Pani La Shar Pawnee double face scarf 90 cms in silk twill Spring 2020. Courtesy Hermès
