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Paris, and beyond
Point of View

Paris, and beyond

Wednesday, 25 June 2014
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Franco Cologni
President of the FHH Cultural Council

“Talent demands effort, dedication and hours spent perfecting a gesture which, day by day, becomes a gift.”

An entrepreneur at heart, though a man of letters, Franco Cologni was quick to embark on a business career that would lead him to key roles within the Richemont Group.

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Through a series of “cultural and social” initiatives, culture being the driving force of society, numerous Swiss watch Manufactures have made significant investments in and around Paris, thanks to which countless treasures have been restored to their original splendour.

Thus Vacheron Constantin lends its support to the Garnier Opera House and its company, the Paris Opera Ballet, heir to the Royal Academy of Dance, instated by Louis XIV, the Sun King.

When Piaget planted more than 750 ancient varieties of rose bushes in the gardens at Château de Malmaison, the rose garden imagined by Empress Josephine bloomed again. The Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, which this year celebrates its thirtieth anniversary, is a hub for Parisian cultural life and a showcase for contemporary creation. At the Orangerie in Versailles, Jaquet Droz presented the ballet company which Maurice Béjart formed in Lausanne.

Then Breguet, which generously contributed to the restoration of galleries at the Louvre. More than two thousand square metres of rooms showing objects from the Louis XV and Louis XVI periods have been returned to their original grandeur. The rooms, but also clocks, furniture, vases and many other decorative objects remind us still today of the grace, elegance and refinement of the Grand Siècle.

The applied arts of the twentieth century merit closer examination, and that they in turn should go on show.

Today as yesterday, craftsmen continue to produce masterpieces of applied art; marvels such as the beautiful and equally precious clocks of which the Manufactures are both the creators and guardians: creators of beauty as yet unseen and guardians of a history and a heritage. This heritage must be preserved but it most also evolve. Personally, I believe that the applied arts of the twentieth century merit closer examination, and that they in turn should go on show for the pleasure and instruction of all.

Fine Watchmaking springs immediately to mind, for it has transformed the techniques and aesthetic of time measurement into great beauty. For many Manufactures, such a showcasing of the twentieth century’s applied arts would be an opportunity to rediscover those moments when their DNA embraced the spirit of the day, thanks to a more incisive interpretation of modernity. Which is why we have faith in their generosity and foresight. Ideas are by no means lacking.

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