Patek Philippe
The Watch : Ladies First Chronograph
While complication movements do not always fall within the province of ladies’ watches, Patek Philippe has broken with tradition and demonstrated its exemplary sense of chivalry. Its brand-new manually-wound chronograph movement, the CH 29 535 PS calibre, five years in the making and built entirely in-house, has taken its place at the heart of the Ladies First Chronograph. From its core architecture to the tiniest finishing details, the CH 29 535 PS calibre is a perfect illustration of the Patek Philippe Seal criteria. The sophisticated shape and the placement of the bridges were defined in such a way as to ensure the most efficient possible energy transfer from the barrel to the regulator, with a minimum of friction – thus favouring high performance and accuracy. The classic architecture of this calibre, a new jewel typifying the company’s characteristic aesthetic and fine craftsmanship, is housed in an elegant rose-gold cushion case set with 136 diamonds. This timepiece was inspired by Art Deco models made by Patek Philippe in the 1930s, yet has a contemporary side – ergonomic rectangular pushpieces, a novel placement of secondary subdials lower than the central axis of the hands, slender Roman numerals, etc. This new benchmark piece ensures clarity and legibility in an original, refined form that brings mechanical sophistication to the peak of perfection.
Architectural Counterpart: Andalusia’s Museum of Memory, Granada, Spain, by Alberto Campo Baeza
Andalusia’s Museum of Memory, recently opened, houses museum activities in over 12,000 m2 of space: exhibit halls, museum, workshops, theatre, multimedia library, offices, a restaurant with a panoramic view, and more. All of these activities take place in two areas, the first of which is an impressive 42-metre-tall screen structure. Like a billboard rising above the land, this screen makes its mark on the existing context. It stands above a low building, the volume of which is interrupted by an elliptical patio. It is a monumental building that in some ways looks almost unreal.
The complex is characterised by a subtle play of contrasts: concrete spaces are set against the very refined treatment of the patio; a facade that is monolithic on one side and much pierced on the other; a tall structure that stands out markedly in the landscape and a low structure inserted very discreetly into the context. We can summarize our thought by describing the built complex as the presence of uncompromising geometry tempered by the sensuality of these contrasts. That is the connection that we see between this structure and the Patek Philippe watch, which is interpreted through the relationship between the watch’s case and the dial.
Richard Mille
The Watch : RM 017 Tourbillon
Richard Mille’s newest creation is characterised by elegant curves and tight lines. Conceived as a new variation on the extra-thin rectangular case introduced two years ago with the RM 016, the RM 017 Tourbillon plays the card of technical excellence in a highly contemporary, relaxed aesthetic. The thinness of its manually wound movement – measuring barely 8.70 mm – makes it one of the slimmest tourbillons yet made. It is another triumph, which the watchmaker has signed without failing to unveil other major innovations as well. For example, the watch has a movement baseplate made of carbon nanofibres. This is a material new to watchmaking that was previously tested in the experimental RM 006 Felipe Massa watch. It yielded such remarkable technical results that the watchmaker has expanded its use to all tourbillon models. The watch’s function selector is also the product of a new development. In addition to the system on the centre of the crown that is used to select the neutral, winding or time setting functions, the RM 017 has a quick adjustment setting for changing the hour hand independently of the minute hand. This advanced technology, combined with new functionalities, makes this new tourbillon a quintessential Richard Mille watch.
Architectural Counterpart : Community Housing Project, Madrid, Spain, by the Morphosis/B + DU Architecture Firm
This creation of the Morphosis architecture firm was built to contain 141 public housing units. It combines various types of group housing. Filling the gap between two multiple-storey residential buildings is an enormous vegetation-covered trellis, placed in a regular arrangement. Beneath this structure, public and private spaces and residential units are organised according to a definite plan. The built complex, in which alleyways and public courtyards alternate with patios and various roofs of buildings, is characterised by a succession of closed volumes and hollowed-out spaces. This feature becomes very obvious when the residential complex is seen from the air, a view that lets the overall vision of the whole show through, consisting of a regular framework beneath which can be perceived all of the elements inherent to the social life of this group of housing units. The almost transparent reading of the built complex that the architects have furnished testifies to the thought devoted to the site, the culture, and the historical sources of the kind of grouping of housing practised in this region. So here we have the use of a kind of architecture that is at once open and introspective. That is one parallel or point of convergence that can be pointed out and that we see in common with our perception of the RM 017 watch.
Chopard
The Watch : L.U.C Tourbillon Tech Twist
Chopard’s latest, made for collectors seeking technical excellence and originality, sports a very intentional bit of innovation. The L.U.C Tourbillon Tech Twist is a double achievement: the unusual placement of this L.U.C. tourbillon’s movement and its four barrels give it an avant-garde aesthetic, and it is the first model ever to operate with a silicon escapement. The technology allows the movement to operate without a lubricant, and also makes the watch very light. This highly technical watch, named L.U.C 4TBSTSI (Quattro Tourbillon Black Superlight Twist Silicon), stands out for its Twist display, which is rotated 30 degrees clockwise, and its crown at four o’clock – an off-centre position that is very comfortable for the wearer. Equipped with exclusive L.U.C Quattro technology, with two sets of two stacked barrels, this new calibre beats at the heart of a palladium case issued in a limited edition of fifty.
Architectural Counterpart : Casa de Retiro Espiritual, Sevilla, Spain, by Emilio Ambasz
First envisioned in 1975, the spiritual retreat centre was designed to be a receptacle for the changing play of light and of a carefully choreographed sequence of experiences combining the physical movements needed to explore the building and the inertia inherent to observation of the landscape and its modifications.
Ambasz’s structure is commonly acknowledged to be an expression of a process having ecological connotations. Yet this edifice can also be viewed in another light. It can be seen that the architect is playing with the terrain on which he is working and beneath which he has buried part of the building’s premises. Like an engraver, he has cut into the plant-covered surface and intentionally reproduces curved and organic shapes on this surface. The natural soil surface is slashed, a characteristic that hints at a stratification of materials and a kind of buried life (though without revealing all of this plan’s secrets); moreover, he has punctuated the surrounding land with the very strong presence of the two white walls, into which a space for observation is inserted. The arrangement offered seems to us to have striking similarities to the treatment of the Tourbillon Tech Twist watch. For the building, great importance is attached to continuity of the vegetation, and the presence of this feature at the site sets off the essential elements of the architecture, namely the walls and the stairs. With regard to the watch design, the attentive viewer is informed as to the presence of the machinery that this object contains within its case, but without receiving a complete revelation of all its secrets. In the end, the eye is caught by the insistent presence of the hands and numbers, which instantly provide the eagerly anticipated information.
