In partnership with its local authorized dealer Rustan’s, Montblanc launched the first pen of its Masters of Art series featuring its Homage to Vincent Van Gogh last Wednesday, July 26.
Whitespace on Chino Roces Avenue, Makati was the perfect setting for the event. Prominent as an art exhibit venue, one area was transformed into a wheatfield with a multi-colored backdrop reflecting the yellow and gold of sunflowers and wheatfields, with menacing blue skies that are very much a part of Van Gogh’s iconic paintings.
The milestone event was hosted by Montblanc and Rustan’s represented by Richemont Luxury (parent company of Montblanc) Marketing Communication director Benjamin Goh, Montblanc sales manager for South Asia Maïca Bergamo, and joined by Rustan’s president Donnie Tantoco, director Tokie Tantoco Enriquez, and Montblanc Philippines senior brand manager Valerie Roque.
The evening’s program was hosted by Issa Litton, with a short talk about the artist by Dindin Araneta, current chairperson at the Arts Management Department at the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.
The newly released Montblanc Masters of Art Van Gogh collection of finely crafted writing instruments pays tribute to the brilliant Dutch painter. Designed and executed with the cooperation and assistance of the Van Gogh Museum, the different editions of these writing instruments represent different periods of Van Gogh’s artistic life; iconic paintings were chosen to be incorporated in the various designs of the collection.
On hand were two models of the Montblanc Van Gogh series: the 4810 model inspired by Van Gogh’s instantly recognizable “Sunflowers” and the beautiful limited edition 888 model inspired by “Wheatfields” and “Starry Night.” Rustan’s enjoyed brisk sales of both models, with the new owners receiving a book of selected paintings by Van Gogh.
Rustan’s president Donnie Tantoco mentioned in his welcome speech that Montblanc continues the tradition of creating fine pens that are objects of beauty and artistry in the Masters of Art series. Van Gogh is one of the most enduring artists that have made art that has been impactful. His is the art of the mundane — mostly nature, or of peasants in the fields, of everyday people he encountered — which he has elevated to dizzying heights in terms of color and composition. Ironically, his paintings—and the Montblanc pens they inspired, among other objects — now command premium prices, a testament to the visual and emotional appeal of Van Gogh’s art.
In prominent attendance at the launch were members of the Fountain Pen Network-Philippines, the country’s premier organization of fountain pen enthusiasts, now 13,000-strong online. (They also accounted for almost all of the evening’s sales.) For us, fountain pens represent individuality and style in an age of mechanical homogeneity. More than writing instruments, they are masterpieces of art and engineering in themselves, and Montblanc is synonymous with pen perfection for many users and collectors.
Apart from geeking out over the new pens on display, the crowd made a beeline for the free portraits and sunflowers given to attendees. I brought home a bouquet of sunflowers and a Van Gogh book for the wifey for skipping dinner with the family. But it was certainly a great time for us pen collectors to look closely at these new Montblancs and make time for fellowship with other pen aficionados.