Avion Luxury International Airport Magazine
When art interprets technique
New trends move forwards but look backwards. Experience linked to traditions. A noble heart. All the characteristics can be found in the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day Date 36, with its iconic middle case made of 18k white gold, bezel with 52 brilliant-cut diamonds and dial radiating the rainbow colours of 10 baguette-cut sapphires, which conceals the Perpetual (Calibre 3255) movement with bidirectional automatic winding. Paying tribute to the first tourbillon debuted at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1900, A. Lange & Söhne proposes the «25th Anniversary», Lange 1 Tourbillon. Presented in silver and blue, it has 38.5 mm white gold case that encloses a silvered dial and burnished silver hands. Inside, the calibre (L961.4) is precision-adjusted in five positions, while the outsize date is engraved in blue on the intermediate wheel cock. The tourbillon, held between two diamond endstones, is visible in an aperture on the dial and through the glass units disc. The Dior Grand Soir Reine des Abeilles No. 14 jewel timepiece, sparkling with white gold and paved with snow-set round-cut diamonds, features a bee on the dial with white mother-of-pearl orb and precious stones on yellow gold wings. Among tourmalines, sapphires, rubies and amethysts, with off-centre movement at 12 o'clock, Richard Mille with the Ladies RM 07-01 incorporates 200 components in a complex structure with bracelet formed of dozens of Carbon TPT plates placed on a grade 5 titanium skeleton by means of 44 spline screws, giving the timepiece a bracelet weight of only 29 grams. A surprising blend of elegance and sportiness. Paying homage to the Bel Paese and its historic cities of art, instead, is Manifattura Italiana by Dolce&Gabbana with the DG 01.01, which includes engraving and inlay techniques on the case, dial and bracelet, and Swiss-made self-winding movement with new generation micro-motor. The bridges and plate are handbrushed and gold plated. All this is combined, in the Invisible Setting model, with 400 diamonds arranged without settings or prongs, and in the calibre DG 01.02, with a special wheel train and division of the dial in 24 hours ("hora italica"). The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Tradition Tourbillon Céleste has a dial and outer ring that frame the constellations of the zodiac. The hour markers are coated with SuperLumiNova™, evoking the glow of heavenly bodies on a clear night. The surface textures, from satin finish to micro-blasting, come together in a 43mm white-gold case that perfectly complements the roseate hue of the constantly beating gold balance wheel. The case encloses the calibre 946 and an orbital flying tourbillon that makes a complete turn of the dial over the course of 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds. Arriving on the wings of a dream are the complications of the lunar phases interpreted by Harry Winston in the trilogy Avenue C™ Mini Moon Phase. This spectacle has white diamonds surrounded by 76 coloured gems: deep blue sapphires, aquamarines or pink sapphires. The sensual feminine design and fascinating geometric forms reminiscent of Art Deco embellish the oval shape of the slim 18k white gold case with 40 sparkling baguette-cut diamonds in dark blue, pink and pale blue, and four mother-of-pearl lines (at 1, 5, 7 and 11 o'clock). A guilloche dial (18k gold) characterises the two new Traditionnelle "Catcher of Time" timepieces from Vacheron Constantin, which capture the imagination
with a self-winding Calibre 2455 movement and 22k gold Maltese cross, date window and small seconds at 3 and 9 o'clock, with a simple display for the man's model, and a gold case (diameter 36 mm) housing a Calibre 1410AS movement and 81 brilliant-cut round diamonds (1.15 ct) finely set on the bezel, lugs and crown for the women's model. Inspired by the functional design of the legendary navigation Mark 11 watch (produced in Schaffhausen for the Royal Air Force since 1948), IWC proposes 250 examples of the Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Spitfire Edition "The Longest Flight" (Ref. IW395501), calibre IWC 82760 with Pellaton winding, components in nonwearing ceramic, inside a stainless steel case with black dial, rhodium-plated hands and green textile strap. A simple rotation of the bezel (hour hand, 24-hour display and date are similarly adjusted) sets the watch to a different time zone. In a complex (Picasso-like) mix, on curved profiles and acute angles, the Horological Machine N°9 ‘Flow’ from MB&F with titanium or 18k 5N red gold case exalts boldness. It features twin oscillating independent balance wheels, which beat at a frequency of 2.5 Hz (18,000 bph), visible under elongated domes of sapphire crystal, two series of chronometric data on planetary differential for one stable reading of the time, satin-finished air scoops and perpendicular dial (hours and minutes). Lastly, it's back to the future for Roger Dubuis with its inimitable Excalibur Spider Unique Series, which is both sporty and fierce with skeletonised spider, Ø47 mm, flange and casebody in SMC carbon, container and crown in black DLC titanium, overprinted with green rubber, for star-in-a-cage allure, as well as 18k gold hands, indexes filled with luminous white SLN and animated by a “Légèreté” tourbillon volante (Calibre RD107 automatic) wound by two micro-rotors, sophisticated minute repeater, function indicator (winding crown, hour adjustment) and All or Nothing indicator. Haute Horologerie navigates uncharted waters, interpreting the classics in a contemporary manner, taking advantage of technological evolution and skilled craftsmanship in the search for new complications and (who knows) “lost time”. But Proust, this time, has nothing to do with it.
A sinistra. Manifattura Italiana di Dolce&Gabbana, una collezione esclusiva di orologi unici.
A destra, in senso orario. Dior Grand Soir Reine Des Abeilles N°14 con l'ape adornata di gemme preziose e cassa in oro bianco di diamanti. Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36 di Rolex, in oro bianco con diamanti e zaffiri taglio baguette. Traditionnelle “Catcher of Time” Limited Edition - Ladies Model di Vacheron Constantin con diamanti a taglio rotondo.