Look, no hands!

Fine Watches love to take liberties with time. That they measure it with the precision one would expect goes without saying. Often, though, they do more than simply “tell” the time; they narrate time, surround it with poetry, provocation even, sometimes to the point that this most basic function of a watch can disappear behind elaborate theatricalities that are intended to fire our imagination and hold our attention. Time is the watchmaker’s raison d’être, a precious pretext, but what if it were more than that? What if time were a multifarious object whose greatest courtesy is to allow us to forget it even exists at all?

Time for love

Of the many guises of time on display at Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie this year, the one to raise the most eyebrows was certainly by Ulysse Nardin. Known for its erotic watches depicting titillating, not to say downright raunchy scenes, the brand had, until now, kept this particular aspect of its production under wraps. Times change. Since the arrival of Patrick Pruniaux as CEO, there are to be no more taboos. Hence visitors were given a full-frontal view of the Classic Voyeur whose hour and minute hands are definitely not the main attraction. Would-be voyeurs exchanged knowing smiles as they ducked behind a closed door to discover, with delectation, the explicit scene played out on the dial of this minute repeater. Two limited editions will be made, with 18 in pink gold and 18 in platinum – with or without diamonds on the bezel. Pictured in a delicately engraved Louis XIV boudoir, the erotic jaquemarts, which are fashioned in pink gold or white gold, are caught in the act, indulging in some “hot horology” each time a pusher is pressed. Many of those contemplating this timepiece – which, writes Ulysse Nardin, “literally makes love to time” -, were more than willing to put the world on hold, ignore the sweep of the hour and minute hands, and let their minds wander…

Up, up and away with time

At Vacheron Constantin, better-known for its forays into the métiers d’art than its erotic dalliances, time is once again a pretext to demonstrate the extraordinary ability of the craftsman’s hand. The most captivating aspect of the five Les Métiers d’Art Les Aérostiers watches isn’t the time display, but the skill and technique required to produce the remarkable dials of these limited editions (five each of the five designs). Precise reproductions of historic drawings, they depict hot-air balloons that took to the skies in France between 1783 and 1785. Each dial requires a combination of artistic crafts, such as classic engraving, pounced ornament engraving and plique-à-jour enamelling, executed with astonishing finesse and precision. Beneath these exquisite scenes, Vacheron Constantin has chosen one of its own movements to discreetly indicate hours, minutes, day and date on discs whose colour matches that of the dial. Precision and reliability are guaranteed, of course, but when confronted with such a degree of refinement, time again slips into the background, giving way to contemplation and admiration.

Precise, to the nearest few minutes

We continue our journey skyward, this time through the stars and planets to Van Cleef & Arpels where we are encouraged to cut the tethers of timekeeping precision and free-float through space. Carrying on the Poetic Complications that are a part of its watchmaking history, the planets of the imagination perfectly align on the dial of the Lady Arpels Planétarium. In the sights of this white gold watch with diamonds encircling an aventurine dial, brought to life by a pink gold Sun, a shooting star in rhodium-plated gold, Mercury in pink mother-of-pearl, Venus in green enamel, the Earth in turquoise and a diamond Moon, are romantic women who care not one iota about keeping precise track of time. While each planet orbits the dial at actual speed, hours and minutes are shown by the shooting star whose movements are precise from a mechanical point of view but clearly approximate as an indication. Such deliberate imprecision leaves us wondering as to the need for accurate time measurement. After all, what is the true purpose of a watch? To tell the time… or to tell a story?