HERMES 90cm CASHMERE SCARF - PERSONA
by LOIC DUBIGEON
I do not like faces on my scarves. Ok, there are a few exceptions, such as Pani, but in general I find faces on scarves to be creepy. This design is no exception. But as discomfiting as this scarf is flat, it is just as amazing when tied. The chocolate and cream colorway is heavenly, and the multi-patterned border is sublime.
Not only do I love the color and border, but I have wonderful memories from acquiring it. I had the pleasure of attending two sales in Toronto - I met so many scarf collectors I'd been corresponding with online, we had lovely meals together and had such adventures getting in line at the crack of dawn to be let in to the two-room zoo of the sale. This scarf was one of the treasures I found. Because it's brown and it's cashmere I don't wear it a lot, but between its beauty and the fond memories associated with it, it's something I would be hard pressed to let go.
From the Hermes Story Behind:
Taking its inspiration from the extraordinary richness of the African cultural heritage, Hermes has created the silk scarf 'Persona', a homage to the art of African masks, an art fascinating in its inventiveness, its diversity, its authentic and symbolic value and its power to arouse emotion, reflecting the deep spirituality of this continent.
"Listen! Everything speaks. Everything is speech. Everything seeks to inform us, to give us knowledge or an indefinable, mysteriously enriching and constructive state of being." is what the antique faces of African wisdom represented here seem to be saying to us.
These figurines reflect traditional ancestral rites, as practiced mainly among the peoples of Central Africa. For individuals or families, ownership of such objects is an expression of power, of ascendency in the tribe. They also embody the living, respected status of lineages among clans of the same region. Kept carefully in secret locations, away from the eyes of the uninitiated, these masks and reliquaries were sacred, ritual objects which, on occasions such as initiations, illness, conflicts and deaths would be used to invoke the protective power of the deceased over their descendents, over the new generations.
'Persona' was the Latin word for the theatrical mask that identified the role played by the actor, but also amplified the sound of his words - 'personare' - so that they reached the audience. This "speaking mask" used by the Romans lies at the origin of our notion of the person, of the personality and personage. It evokes our social being, as perceived by others. It is the face we show them, whereby they recognise us and we communicate with others.
Not only do I love the color and border, but I have wonderful memories from acquiring it. I had the pleasure of attending two sales in Toronto - I met so many scarf collectors I'd been corresponding with online, we had lovely meals together and had such adventures getting in line at the crack of dawn to be let in to the two-room zoo of the sale. This scarf was one of the treasures I found. Because it's brown and it's cashmere I don't wear it a lot, but between its beauty and the fond memories associated with it, it's something I would be hard pressed to let go.
From the Hermes Story Behind:
Taking its inspiration from the extraordinary richness of the African cultural heritage, Hermes has created the silk scarf 'Persona', a homage to the art of African masks, an art fascinating in its inventiveness, its diversity, its authentic and symbolic value and its power to arouse emotion, reflecting the deep spirituality of this continent.
"Listen! Everything speaks. Everything is speech. Everything seeks to inform us, to give us knowledge or an indefinable, mysteriously enriching and constructive state of being." is what the antique faces of African wisdom represented here seem to be saying to us.
These figurines reflect traditional ancestral rites, as practiced mainly among the peoples of Central Africa. For individuals or families, ownership of such objects is an expression of power, of ascendency in the tribe. They also embody the living, respected status of lineages among clans of the same region. Kept carefully in secret locations, away from the eyes of the uninitiated, these masks and reliquaries were sacred, ritual objects which, on occasions such as initiations, illness, conflicts and deaths would be used to invoke the protective power of the deceased over their descendents, over the new generations.
'Persona' was the Latin word for the theatrical mask that identified the role played by the actor, but also amplified the sound of his words - 'personare' - so that they reached the audience. This "speaking mask" used by the Romans lies at the origin of our notion of the person, of the personality and personage. It evokes our social being, as perceived by others. It is the face we show them, whereby they recognise us and we communicate with others.
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