OF STYLE AND HERITAGE

The 263-year-old watchmaker Vacheron Constantin has enriched its collections through its mastery over classical fine watchmaking and an ardent stewardship of its heritage.

The great significance Vacheron Constantin attaches to its creations are manifested in the role of its style and heritage director, Christian Selmoni. Having served at the maison since 1990, Selmoni was appointed artistic director in 2010, before being elevated to his current role last year. “In this current position, my duties are to enrich and showcase our heritage, and with 263 years of it we have plenty of things to communicate.”

Thus, the heritage department functions as the bridge between Vacheron Constantin’s past, present and future. As a result, it has become the de facto reference point for advisory services to auction houses. More than that, the department links new creations to the history of the company through an expression of style in the way it knows best. For Selmoni, that inherent style is qualified by notions of elegance, refinement, balance, sophistication and “a little twist in the design.”

In this year’s new self-winding Fiftysix collection, grand Geneva watchmaking traditions throb within a retro-contemporary style. The collection’s name originates from the year a historical Vacheron Constantin piece – the reference 6073 – was made. During its time, the 6073 contrasted the classicism of its dial against a bold case design in the golden age of round timepieces.

On the new Fiftysix range of timepieces, the design twist that Selmoni alludes to is expressed through branches of the Maltese cross (a component formerly found in watch movements) transposed onto the lugs. Its box-type crystal above the bezel is another distinctive recall of the 1950s, replacing the Plexiglass or mineral glass of yore with a more resistant sapphire. Similarly, its dial channels that 1950s watchmaking iconography with sectors, alternating Arabic numerals and baton-type hour-markers. Three models – all in 40mm cases of steel or 18- carat 5N pink gold – offer various functions: date only, day of the week with date and power-reserve indication, and the complete calendar with precision moon phase.

Selmoni says: “We live in a very digital world surrounded by technology, and it is the analogue objects that help us to reconnect with a tangible world.” www.vacheron- constantin.com ≠

Its box-type crystal above the bezel is another distinctive recall of the 1950s.