Régate sur le Léman

The sailors’ berets: 0.3 mm

Micro-sculpture - Jewellery — 2025

Régate sur le Léman
Régate sur le Léman — 1

To see more clearly, I went down to the lake to sketch and draw inspiration from nature. How to capture the wind, the glint of the sun, the hypnotic ballet of the gulls? From these questions one thing became clear: the scene would be read on two planes.

Régate sur le Léman — 3

In the foreground, the shore comes alive: a tree dances in the wind, its foliage breaking free of the frame, while bulrushes sway and gulls fly over the scene. One of them suddenly dives at the sight of prey.

Régate sur le Léman — 5
Régate sur le Léman — 6

In the background, two yachts in full race, sails swollen, ready to round the regatta buoy. On board, two sailors mid-manoeuvre, each wearing a beret.

Régate sur le Léman — 8
Régate sur le Léman — 9

For the handle, I chose a navy-blue stabilised wood, shaped with curves recalling the ripples of Lake Geneva, to which I wanted to pay tribute with this creation.

Genesis of the work

The making of the piece, from the first sketch to the finished knife.

  1. 01

    The making begins with thinking through the knife’s design and the staging of the scene. Once these are settled, the blade is ground and the scene is laid out on the raw material.

  2. 02

    The sculpting begins by roughing out directly in the solid steel.

  3. 03

    The silhouettes of the main motifs gradually emerge.

  4. 04

    Once the sculpture is finished, hardening sets the steel and gives the knife its final strength. From then on, the sculpted metal can no longer be reworked. Selective cleaning brings out certain details, such as the hull of the boat and some of the reeds.

  5. 05

    The knife is then fitted with a handle. For this creation, I chose a blue stabilised wood evoking the hues of the lake.

  6. 06

    The rivets are set with small diamonds whose sparkle recalls sunlight on the water, inlaid in a compass rose, a direct nod to the world of sailing.

  7. 07

    Following my mentor Charles Roulin, I always carve a gouge along the spine of the blade.

  8. 08

    The finished piece, resting on its stand shaped like a mooring cleat.

The making begins with thinking through the knife’s design and the staging of the scene. Once these are settled, the blade is ground and the scene is laid out on the raw material.
The making begins with thinking through the knife’s design and the staging of the scene. Once these are settled, the blade is ground and the scene is laid out on the raw material.
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