Audemars Piguet invests in the future with two contemporary and modular production sites able to adapt to the company’s evolving needs. While the Manufacture des Saignoles recently welcomed its employees in Le Locle after three years of construction work, Audemars Piguet just laid the first stone of its new building, named the “Arc”, adjacent to the Manufacture des Forges in Le Brassus.
Posts tagged #Le Brassus
Experience: The Audemars Piguet Museum. An Unforgettable Afternoon in Le Brassus.
A while back, while we were in Switzerland, we had the opportunity to visit the Audemars Piguet Museum in Le Brassus, a lifetime experience for any Audemars Piguet watchlifestyler.
Our appointment at the museum was scheduled for 1:30pm on a gloomy Friday. Considering that we were staying in Zürich and the drive to Le Brassus is almost three hours long, we knew we had to be on the road by 10 o'clock in order to be there on time. Here's a picture while we were getting ready to go pick up our car, right before breakfast time. This classic Hermès belt has been worn along with several Audemars Piguet Jumbos in the collection since the 90s.
News: Audemars Piguet High Jewelry Watchmaking Unveiled. Haute Joaillerie Creation.
Press Release
Audemars Piguet’s launch of an extraordinary High Jewelry timepiece gives a fresh impetus to a specialty that has illuminated its heritage for 130 years. Although exercised in varying degrees of intensity over the decades, the creation of splendid feminine jewelry demonstrates skills and talents that the Manufacture has admirably perpetuated to the highest level.
Founded in 1875 in Le Brassus in the Vallée de Joux, Audemars Piguet is an independent watchmaking brand that to this day has always been owned by descendants of its founders and still lives in the village of its birth. Its values of tradition and authenticity are inseparably bound up with the environment in which it has developed, as is demonstrated by its advertising campaign featuring wonderful images of local landscapes. In 2013, the valley blessed by Audemars Piguet is subtly evoked through a highly symbolic piece of jewelry that brings to mind not only the brand’s natural heritage, but also the feminine element that is so deeply rooted within it.
Audemars Piguet started creating calibres designed for ladies’ watches from 1883 onwards, less than ten years after its foundation, and has nurtured the art of jewelry throughout its history. The beginning of the 20th century, with its Belle Epoque and the Roaring Twenties, was a particularly rich period marked by a creativity that has been echoed ever since from generation to generation.
Today, the plant-life themes of Art Nouveau suffuse a depiction of the Vallée de Joux, while the geometric lines of Art Deco endow the portrayal with an inimitable sense of purity and restraint. Different styles thus merge to compose a highly sophisticated contemporary creation.
This new High Jewelry creation was born under the watchful eye of a woman, none other than the President of the Board, Jasmine Audemars, and stem from the fertile imagination of designer Julie Dicks under the guidance of Octavio Garcia, Audemars Piguet’s Chief Artistic Officer.
In the brand’s employ for the past two years, Julie represents the only female presence in the in-house design department. Her particular sensitivity has resulted in a highly refined wristwatch with a 28.5 millimeter diameter, fitted with a bracelet featuring gradually decreasing foliage developed on fine, intersecting branches. It is a play on asymmetry, with reverse ramifications and a crown offset at 2 o’clock, associated with great subtlety expressed through alternating polished and gem-set surfaces.
The stylized landscape on the dial evokes the Dent de Vaulion, a peak in the Jura overlooking the Lac de Joux. To symbolize the serenity of nature lying dormant beneath the snow, the designer has chosen to combine the whiteness of mother-of-pearl, gold and diamonds. A sprinkling of blue sapphires adds a cool, fresh touch, while the exquisitely feminine and romantic spirit of this piece is accentuated by a flight of swallows heralding the imminent arrival of spring. A crossroad of exceptional crafts this contemporary masterpiece was designed, developed and created by Audemars Piguet.
It represents the entire spectrum of crafts perpetuated internally and is the fruit of an interactive collaboration between the various craftsmen - designer, jeweller, gem-setter and engraver – as well as the watchmakers who produced the Manufacture’s mechanical movement. The creation of the bracelet followed a particularly long and meticulous process. The manufacturing phase itself was preceded by an in-depth study of volumes and joints in order to obtain a perfect balance and maximum flexibility, with the aim of respecting the original design. The gold leaves, all different sizes, were individually hand-crafted, and partially cover delicate metal strands, assembled using the sophisticate Parisian mesh technique. The S shaped curves they trace considerably add to the complexity of the task. In order not to spoil the overall aesthetic appearance, the jeweler has designed an invisible clasp concealed at 6 o’clock beneath the case. In addition, as the bracelet can be completely taken apart, any adjustments can be easily made to ensure the closest possible fit on the owner’s wrist.
The precious stones, the purest diamonds (IF) and the best quality sapphires come in brilliant, baguette and marquise cuts. Some are tailor-made in situ to ensure that they suit their positioning, while others have imposed their unique character on the shaping of the structure. Snow, grain and closed setting result in harmonious reflections contrasting with rare subtlety, and a composition that is lit up right the way through to the case-back. Overall, this piece is enhanced with 440 diamonds, including 16 exceptional marquise-cut stones, totaling 10.99 carats, as well as 11 sapphires totaling 0.21 carat.
The engraver calls upon the full measure of his skill to provide a deliberately light relief to the gold plate on the dial. Open-worked like lace, it forms the décor on a base covered in diamonds and pristine mother-of-pearl. The surface of the branches required the utmost attention due to their extreme finesse (0.3 to 0.4 millimeters thick), entailing the risk of destroyed the work by even the slightest inadvertent gesture. Leaves engraved on either side of the case form dynamic lines that extend the ramifications of the bracelet lugs. The movement is enlivened by the distinctive design of the ratchet-wheel. This round, mobile part enhanced by a dedicated engraving, attracts the eye and personalizes the movement that may be admired through the sapphire case-back.
The mechanical movement housed in this High Jewelry timepiece is hand-wound Calibre 3091, beating at a rate of 21,600 vibrations per hour and endowed with a 48-hour power reserve. Designed, developed and manufactured internally at the Manufacture Audemars Piguet, the timepiece is decorated in keeping with the finest watchmaking traditions. Its blued screws evoke the color of the gold hands sweeping over the dial and the sapphires that enhance the radiance of the bracelet. A movement such as this instills exceptionally exclusive character into this sparkling creation, since jewelry watches driven by a mechanical calibre are few and far between. Harmony rules in this sumptuous creation. The theme admirably reflects the identity of a family company that is deeply attached to its roots and the art of jewelry blends wonderfully with the art of watchmaking.
For Audemars Piguet, it also heralds a renaissance in the realm of High Jewelry, to the delight of women who are enthralled by its age-old expertise.
For more info click here.
Experience: Audemars Piguet Boutique Bal Harbour. A Very Modern and Sleek Place.
Located in the heart of Bal Harbour just north of Miami Beach, off of Collins Ave. and 96th, a brand new Audemars Piguet boutique was just opened a couple of weeks ago inside the Bal Harbour Shops.
The boutique includes a 990 sq. ft. space—located on the first floor next to David Yurman— with a very minimalistic design that clearly portrays Audemars Piguet's core values and brand essence. As soon as you walk in, you will be taken on a journey all the way to the home of the manufacture in Le Brassus.
Even though the boutique is very modern, it is still extremely inviting. Before you head into the boutique, you already know that you are in for a treat. As you walk in and are greeted by their friendly staff, core elements of the earth are present in the materials utilized in every single corner of this magnificent space.
Once inside, you will notice sleek slate floors, modern wooden walls, polygonal stone blocks —serving as the base for the wooden counter tops—, high-tech screens, rocks covered with moss, brass sculptures, nicknacks and a large chandelier that illuminates the space.
On the left side as you walk in, next to a beautiful white lacquered indented shelving unit, you will find a super-sized nine panel video wall looping images of nature and landscapes from the Vallée de Joux. On the opposite side, a smaller LED screen is looping horological footage from the manufacture and watches in the collection. At the lounge bar area, feel free to help yourself to some of the most delicious 'macarons' that taste just as authentic as if you were in Paris at Pierre Hermé on Rue Cambon —just a block away from the Audemars Piguet boutique on Rue Saint Honoré.
As you walk around, you'll notice that employees are well trained to make adjustments to bracelets. By the loupe and tool set he was using, we can tell that you won't leave with a scratched bracelet.
As you look around for that next piece that you want to buy, you'll notice the attention that has been put forth to every single detail at the boutique. From the flowers to the bronze sculptures —that appear to be made by Swiss sculptor Giacometti. The displays are unique and well lit showcasing the watches in pure harmony. Fantastic pieces, complications and key references across the different Audemars Piguet lines are on display. Now pick what you want to try on.
Once you pick your favorite watch to peruse, have a seat on the comfortable, perfectly designed chairs and take a deep breath. Take all of the imagery and the boutique design inside you, all the way to your core. You are here for a reason and you know it.
Now, admire the design and craftsmanship of that gorgeous Royal Oak Extra-Thin Tourbillon ref. 26510ST.OO.1220ST.01 you've been wanting for a long time or perhaps the Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph in gold. Choices, choices and more choices. The endless storyline in the life of a watch collector.
As you make another round throughout the boutique, the antique pocket watch from the Audemars Piguet Museum catches your attention. Then, you admire the antique Ingold Fraise horological tool —used to cut movement wheels and their teeth— that is sitting on the upper shelf right above the pocket watch. As you look at the LED screen to the right of those two objects, you just can't stop watching the video that is playing and showing you how these masterpieces are made. You are more than ready to get one.
While you are there and as you make up your mind, enjoy looking at pieces like the Millenary Minute Repeater with AP Escapement ref. 26371TI.OO.D002CR.01 —a limited edition of 8 pieces in Titanium and anthracite dial— and the Jules Audemars Chronometer with AP Escapement in Platinum ref. 26153PT.OO.D028CR.01.
After purchasing that new timepiece, you leave through the door feeling fulfilled after your experience at the beautiful boutique. You are happy, excited and looking forward to sharing your unveiling thread on an online watch forum. Mission accomplished.
As you walk back into the shopping center atrium, you stop by the koi fish and turtle pond outside the boutique. As you look at the koi fish, the orange color on them makes you think about the new Royal Oak Offshore Ceramic Diver and its orange accents. As you are getting ready to leave, you turn back and take a last look at the boutique wondering when you will be back to peruse the new Ceramic Diver and add it to the collection.
Special thanks to Audemars Piguet for allowing us to come visit the boutique and take all of these pictures for our story.
For more info click here.
Audemars Piguet
Bal Harbour Shops
9700 Collins Avenue, Space #159
Bal Harbour, FL 33154
Phone number: 305.864.6776
Toll Free: 866.595.9700
Store Hours:
Monday - Saturday 10 AM – 8:45 PM
Sunday 12noon – 5:45 PM
