Minute decorations
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Ancient techniques conjure subtle inspirations in authentic and delicate sculptures
UNRIVALLED WORKMANSHIP Above, the Métiers d’Art collection “Les Fabuleux Ornements” is inspired by French lace, Indian manuscripts, Ottoman architecture and Chinese embroidery. Opposite page, the dial is decorated like a Chinese needlework, with artfully sculpted gold leaves and pistils, and rare and precious flowers.
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ours, precious stones, complications and inspirations. Each masterpiece made by Vacheron Constantin probes the endless possibilities of matter through the evocative power of enchantment and through the places and eras that man’s hand is called upon to reinterpret. The expertise of the Manufacture’s craftsmen, developed throughout the centuries to combine technical perfection and aesthetic beauty, has led to the creation of a new collection belonging to the Métiers d’Art series: Les Fabuleux Ornements. The new collection is the natural continuation of the rich tradition showcased in the Geneva exhibition. It combines evocative territorial and exotic inspirations with superior craftsmanship, involving the expertise and skill of all Vacheron Constantin’s master craftsmen: watchmakers, enamellers, engravers, gem-setters and guillocheurs. The collection is dedicated to women, who enjoy the refined elegance of a decoration coupled with the authentic perfection of a Haute Horlogerie timepiece. The ultra-slim calibre 1003 in 18 kt. gold, measuring a mere 1,64 mm in thickness, is openworked to reveal its inner beauty: hand-finished bridges, anglé elements decorated and finished by Vacheron Constantin’s master craftsmen, as well as all the superb aesthetic and functional solutions which perfectly embody Victor Hugo’s maxim, cultivated by the Maison: “No external grace is complete if it is not vivified by inner beauty.” The exterior beauty of the Fabuleux Ornements is inspired by four different themes: Chinese embroidery,
Ottoman architecture, Indian manuscripts and French lacework. On a dial decorated with an opal pink cloisonné, Chinese embroidery is rendered in precious sculpted flowers made in rubies, cuprites and garnets with gold leaves and pistils, reminiscent of the silk needlework of the Celestial Empire. Chamfered musharaby in pink gold adorns the dial of the model inspired by Ottoman architecture: shiny half-pearl beads constellate the gold gridwork of the dial, while the calibre is embellished with arabesques to highlight the sense of magic enchantment. The vibrant colours of Indian manuscripts are rendered in the bright iridescent enamels that offset stylised flowers on a pale blue background. The pink gold case is topped with a bezel entirely set in diamonds. To fire the ten different hues used in the decoration is an exacting operation, which likens the craftsman to an alchemist. The elegance of French lacework is recreated in the subtle white gold guipure on which sapphires and diamonds delicately shimmer. The base of the gold dial is decorated in a guilloché motif to accentuate the richness of the embroidery, and the dial itself is in “Grand Feu” enamel. The Métiers d’Art – Fabuleux Ornements timepieces (all bearing the Hallmark of Geneva) are authentic and ultralight sculptures that conjure distant lands and subtle inspirations. They are the contemporary representations of a philosophy that has accompanied Vacheron Constantin for almost 260 years: to push the boundaries of what is possible, achieving perfection and magnificence at all times.
19/11/14 18:50