Messika Brought Botswana’s Colors to the Grand Palais

This Paris Fashion Week, Messika presented Terres de Contrastes at the Grand Palais, with Botswana’s landscapes guiding everything from the choice of gemstones to the shapes of their settings. Continuing the exploration of color, she began with Terres d’Instinct. Valérie Messika drew on the deep blues and greens of the Okavango Delta, the ochres and reds of the Kalahari Desert, and the softer whites, pinks, and violets of the Makgadikgadi salt pans.

The jewelry gave those references a distinct form. In Féroce, pointed gold elements inspired by crocodile teeth surrounded a black opal with shifting blue and green reflections. Delta Sacré interpreted the delta’s branching waterways through an arrangement of more than 600 diamonds, finished with a pear-shaped emerald. The two designs showed the range of Messika’s approach, moving between sharp geometry and intricate diamond work.