What We Know
Last week, Vacheron Constantin presented the latest in their Métiers d’Art collection, the Métiers d’Art Tribute to the Animal Kingdom. The impressive collection, which is based on Vacheron’s four-aperture display Métiers d’Art watch, is made up of six watches, each featuring a facsimile of an animal made out of an unexpected blend of materials and construction. Notably, each dial in the series was created not by a watchmaker, but rather by an independent artist. This last part is key to the Métiers d’Art idea, which offers watches as a platform for artistry of all sorts, resulting in a collection unlike any other I can think of.
The six watches that make up this collection are the: Feathersnake, which features a snake made of several hundred pieces of Lophophore and Goose feather; Glassoctopus, which features a hand-melted and shaped glass octopus set on a hand-guilloched gold-base coated in dark blue; Oraygami, which sets a fever of origami paper rays again against a hand-guilloched gold-base finished in blue; Tigerbroidery, which renders a tiger through an embroidered silk dial using yellow and white gold wire, black ceramic–coated wire, and British and Japanese silk; Papercroc, which uses paper sculpture to evoke a crocodile; and Woodenwings, which features a marquetry dial rendition of a flacon.
To go into the process behind each of these dials would take up far more time and space than is available here (maybe something to go into if ever I get to check these out and shoot them in person), and each of the six dials is undoubtedly remarkable in its own way, but what is maybe most impressive is how much depth each achieves with a stunning limitation on space. While the use of Vacheron’s 2460 G4 perimeter-displayed four-aperture movement — which shows hours, minutes, day, and date in individual windows near the outer edge of the dial — opens up the expanse of the dial for the artists working on each facsimile, that doesn’t change the fact that they each had just 4mm of space between the dial blank and the underside of the crystal in which to work.
Each of the six watches comes in a 42mm case in either 18k white or pink gold. Each measures 12.9mm thick and features a transparent sapphire caseback. Each comes on an embossed motif calfskin leather strap in a color echoing some on the dial. This run of six watches has been announced as concept watches, so don’t expect them to show up in your local VC boutique anytime soon — at least not for sale.
What We Think
When most enthusiasts think of Vacheron Constantin, I’m not sure their minds immediately leap to Métiers d’Art. Still, if you’ve ever had the chance to see any of that line’s offerings in person, you’ll understand that they are something special. Obviously, these particular examples are about as far away from practical as can be for production watches, but as a concept line, they absolutely impress.
It’s hard to pretend that, as watches, these excite me as much as others. But that’s not really what these watches are about, and I think Vacheron understands that. Still, if they can be a brand that, on the one hand, releases arguably the best sports watch of the year in the spring and, on the other, partners with independent artists to do something truly remarkable in the fall, they will continue to be a brand I can get behind in a proper way.
Oh, and, in case you’re wondering, my favorite of the six has got to be Oraygami, and that’s even despite the painfully “punny” name.
The Basics
Brand: Vacheron Constantin
Model: Métiers d’Art Tribute to the Animal Kingdom; Feathersnake, Glassoctopus, Oraygami, Tigerbroidery, Papercroc, Woodenwings
Reference Number: 7630A/000G-H206, 7630A/000R-H205, 7630A/000G-H204, 7630A/000G-H207, 7630A/000R-H202, 7630A/000R-H203
Diameter: 42mm
Thickness: 12.9mm
Case Material: 18k White or Rose Gold
Lume: No.
Water Resistance: 3ATM
Strap/Bracelet: Motif-Embossed Calfskin
The Movement
Caliber: 2460 G4
Functions: Hours, Minutes, Day of the Week, and Date — each displayed via aperture.
Diameter: 31mm
Thickness: 6.05mm
Power Reserve: 40
Winding: Automatic Winding
Frequency: 4 Hz
Jewels: 27
Additional Details: 237 Components
Pricing & Availability
Availability: Concept collection, not for sale at present.
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