Style Edit: Inside Vacheron Constantin’s ‘The Pleats of Time’ exhibition in Hong Kong, the Swiss luxury watchmaker’s collaboration with haute couture designer Yiqing Yin
- The stunning showcase at the Arts Pavilion in West Kowloon Cultural District blended elements of masterful watchmaking, high fashion and haute perfumery
- The Infinity Dress, Yin’s most renowned couture work, was also showcased, alongside some of the watchmaker’s vintage pieces, such as a 1838 yellow gold pendant watch
Ever since master watchmaker Jean-Marc Vacheron produced his very first timepiece at the tender age of 24, way back in 1755, Vacheron Constantin has stood for peerless excellence in craftsmanship. To this day, the storied Swiss watchmaker enjoys an enduring reputation for working alongside the most creative designers, craftspeople and artisans.
It’s there in the numerous master engravers, enamellers, guillocheurs, gemsetters, watchmakers and jewellers without whom its horological masterpieces couldn’t come into existence. It’s visible in collections like Les Cabinotiers – a name derived from the tiny rooms in which watchmakers used to work – that feature bespoke creations and one-of-a-kind pieces. And it can be seen in Vacheron Constantin’s collaborations with some of the finest creative and artisanal talents the world has to offer.
Work like theirs has to be seen in the flesh to be fully appreciated. Lovers of both high horology and traditional culture in Hong Kong recently had a chance to do just that: a recent exhibition at the Arts Pavilion within West Kowloon Cultural District gave watch lovers the chance to get up close and personal with some of Vacheron Constantin’s most breathtaking contemporary creations. The stars of the show at “The Pleats of Time: A Creative Collaboration with Yiqing Yin” exhibition were two utterly distinctive timepieces created in partnership with French Chinese haute couture designer and fashion industry powerhouse Yiqing Yin.
In particular, one-off piece The Pleats of Time is just about the most distinctive example of the horological arts you could ever wish to see. It showcases a mastery not just of fine watchmaking but also of haute couture and, in a world first, of haute perfumery.
The high fashion influence on the watch is immediately clear from a glance at the dial. Here you’ll find the pleats that give the piece its name, picked out in lilac using mother-of-pearl interwoven with layers of silk thread. They form the body of the dial – which is free from indications – in two circles, separated by a ring of gold pearls and surrounded by 58 diamonds on the bezel.
Another 34 diamonds surround the striking moon phase complication at 2 o’clock, where it’s accompanied, on the side of the 37mm pink gold case, by a crown set with a moonstone. Perfumery comes into the equation thanks to the watch’s calfskin leather strap. An abstract depiction, designed by Yin, of a watercourse made from embroidery and mother-of-pearl shards, it also contains nanocapsules of a special fragrance created by master perfumer Dominique Ropion, which are integrated into its lining, loop and embroidery, allowing the scent to be released gradually with the movement of the wrist.