Artisans de Genève is an independent company specializing in the personalization of timepieces. Artisans de Genève is not affiliated with Rolex SA nor authorized by them to intervene in their products for any reason whatsoever. This personalization was ordered by one of their customers who own a Rolex GMT-Master II ref. 116710 timepiece and the watch was created for his own private use.

When starting a personalization, each project holds unique stories, and reminiscences engraved in a timepiece. The craftsmanship offers infinite possibilities to express our client’s desires. Despite being in a state of severe wear and tear, Frank’s GMT timepiece had been dear to him for years. The watch held the most memories and was the best candidate for his personalization project. Frank Abagnale’s personalization is the perfect example of a full restoration that results in a unique project with the most incredible vintage aura.

Frank Abagnale Jr. was still a teenager in the 1960s when the GMT Master reference 6542 was already an icon. He ran away to New York to escape a gloomy family life. To survive alone in the city, he reinvented himself in every possible way. He was only 16 years old. Very quickly, he found a loophole in the banking system and had fun forging checks to support himself. He soon discovered that it would be much easier for him to do it dressed as an airline pilot. Years later he took on different roles and personalities dressed and impersonating a pilot, a lawyer, a teacher, etc. More than 40 years later, he became one of the world’s most recognized security experts working with banking institutions and the FBI. His story “Catch me if you can” has made him world-famous since it was adapted into a movie by Steven Spielberg in 2002. Upon Frank’s request, Artisans de Genève underwent ‘The Uncatchable’ personalization project.

Since Frank wanted to capture the essence of America from the 1960s and his life during that time, he felt that a Rolex GMT Master would be the perfect timepiece for it. A timepiece that embodies the elegance and style of that era, originally designed for airline pilots. This legendary and almost mysterious timepiece was worn only by airline pilots. Frank asked us to focus on every detail to capture the essence of the 1960s, such as the riveted bracelet, an aged ‘Albino’ dial, and a two-tone bakelite bezel. For the first time, Artisans de Genève developed a riveted steel bracelet to perfect the harmony between craftsmanship and technique, thus refining the look of Frank’s timepiece. The ultimate goal was to have a modern watch transformed into a vintage-looking treasure cloaked as a GMT Master ref. 6542 ‘Albino’ issued for Pan Am pilots.

For the date disc, Artisans de Genève used a font inspired by the 60s in red and blue to be paired perfectly with the bakelite bezel. The dial was developed in two hues with a subtle cream color thanks to an in-house aging process. The indexes were hand-painted to complete the style desired by Frank.

To emphasize the 60s allure, the bezel insert is made of bakelite, the minute circle is covered with a luminescent material, and the bezel has flat teeth for a more refined look. The case middle was machined to give it a vintage look. The horns are satin-finished, and their polished facets blend with the ringed gold mass and beveled bridges, the perfect combination of technique and savoir-faire

For this modification, the 1960s aesthetic inspired every modification of the Rolex calibre 3186 powering Frank’s Rolex GMT-Master II ref. 116710. Artisans de Genève paid particular attention to the curves and finishes of each piece. They developed a balance point with a more refined shape, mirror polish, and reentrant angles at Frank’s request.

The 'The Uncatchable' GMT Master Project is fitted with a display case back, a dial with three shades of aged cream color, green superluminova on the dial and bezel insert, no crown guards, blued hands for the hour, minutes, and seconds, a GMT hand with a fine arrow in red and a 21K gold oscillating weight with Geneva stripes.

Sticker Price Undisclosed. However, based on their other projects and what we’ve seen in the secondary market, this personalization cost at least $30,000-$50,000 USD on top of the watch that had to be supplied by the owner for personalization. For more info on Artisans de Genève click here.