NAME: Sophie CLAUDEL
JOB TITLE: Director of L’ÉCOLE Middle East, School of Jewelry Arts - supported by Van Cleef & Arpels
MOVED TO THE UAE IN: May 2023
Sophie manages a School of Jewelry Arts based in Dubai called L’ÉCOLE, which is supported by Van Cleef & Arpels. Previously she was managing a school of art and design delivering master’s degree in France, and before that she was a cultural diplomat for 11 years in London and New York.
Her work is based on developing access to jewelry culture for a large audience in the Middle East. To achieve this goal, she is building daily a “puzzle” of partners, friends, artists and communities of jewelry arts lovers. The key element for L’ÉCOLE in the Middle East is to create a strategy based on local relevance and embedded in the cultural and educational landscape.
“Some men see things as they are and ask “why”. I dream things that never were and ask “why not”” (G.B. Shaw) is Sophie's main motto in life.
Let's discover a typical day in her life:
9AM: I arrive at L’ECOLE, and usually start by multiple coffees! We start the classes at 10am, in 3 fields of expertise: gemology, know-how (jewelers techniques), and history of jewelry. Our students come from many different backgrounds, as there isn’t any prerequisite. We offer courses “a la carte” to any jewelry arts lovers.
10AM: We welcome our students, and visitors for the exhibition. We organize exhibitions twice a year. They are curated by gemologists, art historian, specialists of jewelry culture, and travel in our different campuses around the world (Paris, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Dubai). The previous one was about emeralds, and the current one is called “Gold and Treasures: 3000 years of Chinese ornaments”. It is a very strong feeling to live with an exhibition at your side, in your professional environment. When our exhibitions finish, I usually feel quite sad. Even though I know that the following one will be amazing as well!
12NOON: Meeting with my team. Now we are almost at full capacity. We were 2 when we started a year ago, 15 team members today, and still a few people to recruit. 15 people, 13 nationalities. People keep saying “yes sure, it is the Dubai effect”, but it is much more than that… They are all wonderful human beings. I’m impressed by their capacity, individually and collectively, to be at the same time very professional and taking care of each other.
1PM: I skip lunch most of the time. Eating makes me sleep!
2PM: I usually have several external meetings, with private collectors, academics, artists, cultural partners… This is part of the “puzzle” I am building these days. I love meeting new people, experts in their field, with whom you can share so many interesting ideas, and listen to their own professional story.
7PM-8PM: We organize Talks about jewelry culture at L’ÉCOLE once a month, and other talks and events with partners in Dubai and other Emirates. When I don’t have any events in the evening, this is for me the time to go back home. Reading press articles, especially in geopolitics or cultural/educational topics is one of my favourite occupations. With playing piano. I do that usually in the evening to wash my brain from day-to-day tasks.
9PM: I am very fund of architecture. In another life I will be Architect! Every evening I take the time to dive into my last project: I love drawing architectural plans and create renderings with a professional software that I learned to use over the years.
10PM: I smoke a cigar as soon as I have time for it – an hour at least. I smoke mainly Don Alejandro from Vegas Robaina or Lusitania from Partagas. It forces me to slow down… a moment of fullness, out of time.
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