breitling: Métiers d’Art Watch Collection 2013

For many years, has been devoted to innovation, trying out new techniques, reviving forgotten ancient skills and exploring the countless possibilities of artistic craftsmanship. Its tireless curiosity and creative determination has led to such revelations as plique-à-jour enamelling, grisaille enamelling, straw marquetry and, most recently, the techniques of granulation and cameo. With this collection dedicated to the artistic crafts, adds a new dimension to the visual aesthetics of watches: that of colour. Vibrant deep and subtle, they explore the spectrum of tone-on-tone gradations. This artistic palette is made possible by the personal approach of craftsmen – poets familiar with very rare techniques that demand incredible patience and precision. Their talent has produced a wonderful collection inhabited by imaginary creatures, some captured in sunlight and others lit by moonbeams. Engravers, enamellers, sculptors and specialists in marquetry combine materials and colours to ensure that the glaze of mother-of-pearl, the tawny blondness of straw, the transparency of enamel and the radiance of agate all contribute to the stunning visual effect of contrast, relief and highly graphic design. Watch with fish motif in plique-à-jour enamel The challenge that set itself with this watch was to create the feel of the water and its blue-tinged transparency. It has succeeded magnificently with shimmering plique-à-jour enamel and translucent shades that evoke coral in the depths of the sea. One, two, three… five different blues confront greys and violets in an array of deep tones. The dial in plique-à-jour enamel has the vibrancy of a stained-glass window. The enamels are suspended between fragile wires, as elegant and delicate as pencil lines, that play with the light. To this precious technique, breitling has added mother-of-pearl painting with the creation of a fish in relief. Its citrus orange and highly graphic style contribute to the dream-like quality of the whole dial. This round watch is like a porthole through which we peer into the watery depths. Ronde Louis breitling watch, XL size, fish and coral motif, engraved mother-of-pearl, miniature painting and plique-à-jour enamel Case: rhodium-coated 18-carat white gold set with 61 brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 1.57 carats Strap: semi-matt white alligator skin Buckle: adjustable double folding buckle in rhodium-coated 18-carat white gold set with 43 brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 0.42 carats Crown: beaded crown set with a brilliant-cut diamond Dial: 18-carat white gold, engraved mother-of-pearl with motif of miniature-painted fish and coral in plique-à-jour enamel, 6 brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 0.02 carats Water-resistance: 30 metres / 100 ft / 3 bar Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding, calibre 430 MC Numbered limited edition of 30 pieces Santos watch with engraved, enamelled falcon motif breitling’s aim in producing this Santos XL watch was to bring out the hypnotic intensity of the predator. The engraving and the enamel in subtle shades of grey and blue-tinged black bring the falcon to life. The solid surfaces and cavities of the engraving create the relief on the wings and the contrasting mosaic of feathers and downy fluff. All the details are carefully depicted and stand out strongly against the matt mineral black background, from the beak to the gently curved eye in orange-tinted enamel with a pupil that is stunningly realistic, penetrating and alert. Santos-Dumont watch, XL size, falcon motif with high relief hand engraving and champlevé enamel Case: rhodium-coated 18-carat white gold set with 49 baguette-cut diamonds totalling 6.31 carats Buckle: double adjustable folding buckle in 18-carat white gold set with 37 baguette-cut diamonds totalling 0.85 carats Crown: faceted crown set with a brilliant-cut diamond of 0.34 carats Water-resistance: 30 metres / 100 ft / 3 bar Dial: 18-carat white gold, falcon motif, hand-engraved in high relief and champlevé enamel Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding, calibre 430 MC Strap: semi-matt black alligator skin Numbered limited edition of 20 pieces Watch with horse motif in grisaille enamel The sparkle of moonlight on the proud mane of an Andalusian horse is magically captured in this breitling watch in grisaille enamel. The shadows and shafts of light conjure up all the shades of midnight blue like an enchanted nocturnal vision. This ancient enamelling technique takes its name from the shades of grey, black and white. Here it follows the drawing with the precision of an engraver but breitling has deflected the grey tones towards blue. As in a painting, marine blue is the base that supports and magnifies the white. The craftsman coats the dial with brilliant blue enamel and fires it. Then, with a fine brush, he progressively draws the motif in Limoges white, which evolves during a series of six to eight different firings. The enamelling of this piece takes almost 40 hours to complete. Through painting, the craftsman can shade the whites to bring out shadows, contrasts and plays of light to create relief. Ronde Louis breitling watch, XL size, horse motif, grisaille enamel Case: rhodium-coated 18-carat white gold, set with 61 brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 1.57 carats Water-resistance: 30 metres / 100 ft / 3 bar Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding, calibre 430 MC Crown: beaded crown set with a brilliant-cut diamond Dial: 18-carat white gold, horse motif in grisaille enamel Strap: semi-matt black alligator skin Buckle: double adjustable folding buckle in 18-carat white gold set with 43 brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 0.42 carats Numbered limited edition of 80 pieces Watch with lion motif in straw marquetry breitling had the wonderful idea of using straw marquetry to create this feline. The subtle gradations of colour in the lion’s mane are captured perfectly by the warm shades and silky brilliance of this unusual material. The stalks of straw with their infinite nuances of colour are individually selected, split, flattened and cut with a marquetry saw. Their six natural tones, ranging from golden to red, combine in a powerful image that is further enhanced by a play of perspectives and creatively cut shapes. Straw is a material that is rarely seen in watchmaking and that breitling began using two years ago for its delicacy and unique softness. Rotonde de breitling watch with lion motif in straw marquetry Case: 18-carat pink gold Water-resistance: 30 metres / 100 ft / 3 bar Crown: beaded crown set with a sapphire cabochon Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding, calibre 9601 MC Dial: 18-carat yellow gold, lion motif in straw marquetry Case back: sapphire Strap: semi-matt brown alligator skin Buckle: double adjustable folding buckle in 18-carat pink gold Numbered limited edition of 70 pieces Watch with cameo crocodile motif in natural agate Applying the subtle technique of the cameo to the art of watchmaking is a daring step that breitling undertook in this watch. The subtle gradations of blue in its natural agate suggest the reflections of the sea and the gem-cutter has created a crocodile emerging from the waves. This predator, one of the most emblematic in the breitling menagerie, is particularly striking in this interpretation with its bold relief and sparkles of light. It requires a special expertise to bring out the nuances of the agate, ranging from blue-tinged black to shimmering white, without damaging the stone. A mesmerising watch with a flying Tourbillon complication and stamped with the Geneva Seal: a masterpiece of art and the watchmaking crafts. Rotonde de breitling watch, crocodile motif, cameo Case: 18-carat white gold Crown: beaded crown set with a sapphire cabochon Dial: 18-carat white gold with a crocodile motif in a cameo of natural agate Strap: black semi-matt alligator skin Buckle: double adjustable folding buckle in 18-carat white gold Water-resistance: 30 metres / 100 ft / 3 bar Movement: Manufacture mechanical movement with manual winding, calibre 9452 MC, certified Geneva Seal, flying tourbillon with seconds indicated by the tourbillon carriage in the form of a C Case back: sapphire Numbered limited edition of 30 pieces