STYLE BUZZ
Into the blue
It originated innocuously enough as a mere stylistic trend years ago. The blue movement in luxury watchmaking has become stronger – and cooler – today than ever before. Across brands from every level of horology, dials, bezels, cases, and straps have all taken turns to be dressed in this ultraversatile and gainfully timeless hue. But it doesn’t end there.
Thanks to the ingenuity of a few good manufactures, the colour blue in modern watchmaking has come to represent everything from contemporary style and everyday wearability to artisanal creativity and even technical innovation.
Few colours have the same innate ability to be simultaneously fresh yet familiar. This is why blue is such a natural fit to even the most time-honoured icons of haute horlogerie. It adds a vibrant yet elegant touch to the new
Santos de Cartier, which already sports a refined case and bezel. It lends a breezy look to the Panerai Luminor Marina
PAM1028, reminding us of the sea in the same way those sand-coloured hands and hour markers remind us of beautiful beaches.
When bathed in lots of bright natural light, the magnificent sunray finish of these timepieces bring out the true beauty of these dials. With it, even the humblest of surfaces are elevated to a haute horlogerie status. Harry Winston’s three-hand
Emerald Automatic, for instance, may look simple in photos but see the real thing and you’ll be hard pressed not to swoon at its gorgeous glow.
Likewise, with the Vacheron Constantin Patrimony
Perpetual Calendar, a sunray finish brings depth and dimension to the dial which juxtaposes beautifully with the ultra-thin case.
But not all blue dials need the sunray finish, as evinced by the TAG Heuer Monaco Calibre 11. This iconic square cased chronograph celebrates 50 years of motorsport racing in 2019. Even as TAG Heuer has made numerous iterations in various colours, the Monaco’s most natural colour is blue because the blue Monaco was what screen legend Steve Mcqueen wore in the 1971 film Le Mans.
The matte blue dial of the Monaco Calibre 11 conveys a distinct sportiness that’s echoed by the Patek Philippe Chronograph
Ref. 5172G, although the two watches are of course positioned very differently. There is a very palpable vintage look in this twocounter Patek Philippe chronograph brought out by the syringe hands, plain round pushers, stepped lugs, and the blue varnished dial. So dark it looks almost black from certain angles, Ref. 5172G is a fine example of Patek Philippe superb dialmaking know-how. Also rather discreet, the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Sea-dweller
Deepsea Ref. 126660 might not at first glance appear to carry any trace of blue, but that’s the beauty of its D-blue dial. Because this watch commemorates director James Cameron’s incredible solo dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench (literally the deepest place on earth) this dial has a two-colour gradient from blue at the centre to black around the rim.
Sometimes a dial is naturally blue because of its core material. The Omega Constellation Manhattan very aptly uses blue aventurine to evoke a midnight sky blanketed by stars. Harry
Winston’s Ocean Sparkling Biretrograde Automatic offers a scintillating vista using blue ruthenium crystals and baguette-cut diamonds.
The latest Blancpain Fifty Fathoms collection includes a special model featuring blue ceramic not just on the bezel but the dial as well – a first for the brand. Hardwearing, light and corrosionresistant, ceramic is not often seen in blue and here Blancpain creates a sporty-chic vibe by pairing it with high-contrast red gold. Indeed, there are no limits to what a brand can do with the colour blue.
Artisans from Audemars Piguet produced a smoked blue and black dial using traditional grand feu enamel for the Code 11.59
Tourbillon. Grand feu enamel isn’t new in luxury haute horlogerie but this would certainly be the first instance of a gradient dial hand-painted in the traditional Genevan art.
Similarly, lacquer painted dials have existed for a long time but in the Marine Dame 9517 Breguet has found a new application that truly reminds us of azure blue waters. Hand-painted using two different tones of blue, the manufacture introduced a unique marbling effect where no two dials are exactly the same.
Hermès, too, presented something new with the Arceau
Cavales. The maison best known for its rich expertise with leather debuted the world’s first leather marquetry dial. Like a miniature jigsaw puzzle, tiny fragments of laser-cut calfskin are assembled together to form a complete picture, in this case an equestrian-inspired tapestry of cobalt, indigo, midnight, seafoam, and cornflower blues. Here’s where art meets tradition in the most e astonishing way imaginable.