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Complications make themselves useful at SIHH
SIHH

Complications make themselves useful at SIHH

Monday, 15 January 2018
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Christophe Roulet
Editor-in-chief, HH Journal

“The desire to learn is the key to understanding.”

“Thirty years in journalism are a powerful stimulant for curiosity”.

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4 min read

Brands are pacing themselves with sensible, classic, useful complications. And when they do move it up a gear, tourbillons and chronographs ensure they play safe.

There will always be close encounters of the horological kind. Watches that reflect a wild imagination, such as MB&F’s MoonMachine 2, and the belief there are no limits to what can be mechanically achieved, exemplified by a piece such as Vacheron Constantin’s Les Cabinotiers Grande Complication “Crocodile”. These watches are all part of the “game”. Their role is to prove that when it comes to complexity and creativity, Fine Watchmaking hasn’t said its last word, and that there are still many exciting areas to explore. Of course, the likes of the Minute Repeater Tri-Axial Tourbillon by Girard-Perregaux, the RM 53-01 Tourbillon Pablo Mac Donough from Richard Mille with its suspended movement, or Greubel Forsey’s GMT Earth and its three-dimensional globe will always have their audience of wealthy connoisseurs, but the average Joe or Jane can only marvel from afar at such masterpieces. This doesn’t imply these more ordinary watch lovers aren’t worthy of brands’ attention. On the contrary; the past two years suggest that watch manufacturers have reconnected with these buyers and thankfully so – no-one would want the sector to become a coterie.

Some have been tempted by the devil, opting for small series when watchmaking is about industrial production too.

Granted, the economic situation has imposed greater restraint, put an end to spiralling prices and forced brands to consider how they can cater to the millennials who are reshaping markets. Certain makers have been tempted by the devil, opting for small series when watchmaking is about industrial production too. But even the devil can fall on hard times, and so it’s back to more tangible values, affordable models, useful complications and traditional materials. Entry-level is no longer a segment to be looked down upon. For Ulysse Nardin this means a Classico Manufacture, which it unveiled prior to SIHH. Jaeger-LeCoultre’s new Polaris range kicks off with an Automatic model. There is also an Automatic Date in Montblanc’s Star Legacy collection, which builds on the impressive legacy of expertise at Minerva, Montblanc’s manufacturing arm now celebrating its 160th anniversary. It’s a similar tale at Cartier which has cut back its usual avalanche of products, complications and métiers d’art – with the exception of an extraordinary and inventive Création d’une Panthère – to leave the door wide-open to time-only models under this storied name. Audemars Piguet follows a similar tack with its multiple Royal Oaks, as does A. Lange & Söhne with the Saxonia.

There are spinning cages everywhere, as though watchmakers have rediscovered the tourbillon's merits.
Useful and desirable

As inspired as they may be, these “simple” watches are perhaps not the stuff of every horophile’s dreams. Fortunately brands are gifted at elevating our thoughts to loftier spheres. This time, however, they take care to sail safe waters, away from the siren’s call. These are quieter times, including where complications are concerned. Once, only a handful of manufacturers were au fait with the mysteries and intricacies of the tourbillon regulator (whose relevance today is a subject of discord within the community). Now considerably more mainstream, it found itself being pushed aside by other complications, starting with the minute repeater, whose reputation remains intact. Not so today. There are spinning cages all over SIHH, as though watchmakers have rediscovered the tourbillon’s merits. No brand is without one, whether Piaget which has made it the star of its stone marquetry Altiplanos, Panerai which has revived its Astronomo and Scienziato models, IWC and its Portugieser Constant-Force Tourbillon Edition “150 Years”, or Vacheron Constantin with its Traditionnelle Tourbillon.

So much for precision, which the tourbillon is said to improve. The vast majority of this year’s new releases focus on useful complications. Annual calendars continue to inspire some interesting productions, particularly at Parmigiani with its Kalpa Hebdomadaire, Montblanc and the Star Legacy Full Calendar or IWC and its Pilot’s Watch Annual Calendar. This year’s winner is, however, the chronograph, no doubt because it ticks all the boxes of robustness, precision and reliability – three qualities which a lot of customers are looking for right now. This is something brands had perhaps forgotten and which Jaeger-LeCoultre is bringing up to speed with its Polaris Chronograph, alongside Montblanc and its TimeWalker Rally Timer Chronograph, Hermès and the Arceau Chrono Titane or A. Lange & Söhne’s Triple Split. Still a pleasure, stopping time is now a necessity too.

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