The rhythm by Dr. Fahamu Pecou a stylish design celebrating two traditions
For the festive season, Maison Martell has collaborated with the American artist, academic and activist Dr. Fahamu Pecou, who was inspired by Martell Blue Swift’s fusion of two cultures and two traditions to create a bold and contemporary limited edition.
A vibrant artistic collaboration with Dr. Fahamu Pecou
An interdisciplinary artist and scholar who challenges the canons of visual culture, Dr. Fahamu Pecou became part of the Martell family when, as a result of his pioneering work, he was chosen as a “Swift One” for a 2021 campaign. Based in Atlanta, he has since collaborated with the House on the “New Black Renaissance” initiative, bringing together a community of creatives with the goal of redefining black culture in the 21st century and beyond. For the Martell Blue Swift Limited Edition, Dr. Fahamu Pecou was inspired by how this ground-breaking spirit brings together two traditions – French cognac and American bourbon – to create a new experience, a new harmony. He describes Martell as “a beautiful example of the rhythm of creating” and draws parallels with music: hip-hop is one of his major sources of inspiration.
Find your rhythm: the Martell Blue Swift Limited Edition
The musical parallels are manifest in his diptych The Rhythm, twin portraits of a man and a woman, which the artist painted specifically for Maison Martell. Rendered in vibrant harmonies of blue, they feature on the gift box of the Martell Blue Swift Limited Edition. “My aim was to capture the spirit of Martell Blue Swift in my signature style,” says Dr. Fahamu Pecou. “Poised, stylish and contemporary, the two figures embody the bold and creative.”
The background pattern on the gift box combines elements from music – which echo the presence of an African drum in the paintings – and from Maison Martell’s 300 years of savoir-faire, symbolising the “rhythm of creating”. The gift box includes two tumbler glasses, inviting everyone to find their rhythm through a perfect tasting ritual.
Martell Blue Swift: symbolising the Martell spirit of freedom
The Martell Blue Swift Limited Edition by Dr. Fahamu Pecou is an invitation to bring and audacious spirit to the festive season – just as Martell Blue Swift, which is named after the historic emblem of the House, symbolises the Martell spirit of freedom and daring. Born of the meeting of two cultures and two traditions of savoir-faire, Martell Blue Swift – the world’s first spirit drink made with VSOP cognac, then finished in bourbon casks – breaks down barriers to create a unique taste sensation. It is also a tribute to Maison Martell’s enduring ties with the United States: it was the first cognac house to ship to the New World as early as 1783. Aged first in fine-grained oak, before being finished in bourbon casks, Martell Blue Swift is characterised by luscious notes of candied fruit combined with the subtle sweetness of vanilla and toasted oak.
This unexpected cognac is surprisingly smooth and remarkably rich.
About Dr. Fahamu Pecou
Born in New York and based in Atlanta, Dr. Fahamu Pecou is an interdisciplinary artist and scholar who challenges the canons of visual culture in order to reframe the narrative around communities that are often written out of society’s story. Although his work, drawing on his personal experience, focuses primarily on representations of black masculinity, the themes he addresses – identity, belonging, self-representation – are universal. “Art is a language that allows us to communicate the essence of who we are,” he says. “Through art, we can tap into what it is like to be in a particular moment, but also connect across generations.”
About Maison Martell
The oldest of the great cognac houses, founded by Jean Martell in 1715, Maison Martell is renowned throughout the world for the finesse and elegance of its cognacs, the result of a legacy of savoir-faire handed down through nine generations. Together with a passion for its craft and a profound attachment to the terroir, Maison Martell is defined by the audacity with which it has challenged convention to create new expressions of cognac, including the icon Martell Cordon Bleu in 1912. The free spirit of the House is symbolised by its historic emblem: the swift.
