Easily one of the most venerable brands in watchmaking, Vacheron Constantin has long combined the art of watchmaking with respected codes of artistic crafts for its Métiers d’Arts watches.
Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Arts Tribute to the Animal Kingdom Tigerbroidery.
Vacheron ConstantinNot only has the brand long offered hand-painted dials, enamel dials, sculpted dials and more, it also has important artistic ties with key art institutions including the Louvre in Paris and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. With so much expertise, one wonders what the brand can possibly do next. That wondering is over. Today the Swiss manufacture unveils its newest collection – one that ventures into decidedly unexpected territory. The new Métiers d’Arts Tribute to the Animal Kingdom consists of six concept watches created through Vacheron Constantin’s “One of Not Many Crafts Programme.”
Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Arts Tribute to the Animal Kingdom Glassoctopus features a three-dimensional glass sculpture on the dial.
Vacheron ConstantinRather than relying solely on traditional watchmaking arts, the project brings six outside artisans — specialists in glass sculpting, micro-origami, gold embroidery, featherwork, paper sculpting and wood marquetry — into the microscopic confines of a watch dial.
The dial as art, combined with such unusual forms of art, make the undertaking so unusual. Each watch measures 42mm in diameter, but the artisans had no more than about four millimeters (the thickness of about three stacked credit cards) between the dial surface and sapphire crystal in which to create three-dimensional compositions.
Techniques normally practiced on objects such as large works of art, furniture monumental sculpture have been rethought, reimagined and brought to reality in miniscule format. For some of these crafts, years of research, prototyping and, in several cases, entirely new tools and working methods were required so that the timepiece could come to fruition.
Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Arts Tribute to the Animal Kingdom Feathersnake.
Vacheron ConstantinAmong the standouts is Glassoctopus, whose transparent glass octopus rises just 3.5mm above a dark blue, hand-guilloche gold dial. Glass artist Simone Crestani melted tiny glass rods and shaped the creature piece by piece with specially developed tungsten tools. Even the octopus suckers were built dot by dot. Because transparent glass magnifies and distorts what lies beneath it, the overlaps of the tentacles had to be carefully engineered. Development took more than a year, beginning with prototypes in spring 2025.
Equally striking is Feathersnake, a serpent assembled from more than 200 tiny pieces cut from seven rare Lophophore feathers, with goose feathers forming the surrounding landscape. Artist Julien Vermeulen had to create a micro-scalpel from a reshaped needle and modify another needle to place microscopic dots of glue. Including research and prototyping, the dial required approximately 250 hours of work.
For the dials of each of the six Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Arts Tribute to the Animal Kingdom watches, a special craft from outside of the watch world was employed.
Vacheron ConstantinTigerbroidery, meanwhile, uses 9-karat yellow- and white-gold embroidery wires and Japanese silk to create its prowling tiger in the jungle. The craft of embroidery is already so niche and specific, with just a handful of the finest artisans in the world mastering the best techniques but bringing it to fruition on a watch dial with multi-dimensions is a different statement altogether.
The remaining watches are no less unconventional. Oraygami suspends six tiny hand-folded paper manta rays above a blue guilloche dial; Papercroc builds a white crocodile and foliage from embossed, laser-cut and layered cotton paper; and Woodenwings renders a falcon in three-dimensional marquetry using 12 different species of wood.
Allowing all of this artistry to remain unobstructed is Vacheron Constantin’s self-winding Caliber 2460 G4. Instead of conventional hands sweeping across the dial, hours, minutes, day and date appear through four apertures positioned around its perimeter. The 237-component movement offers a 40-hour power reserve and, for this series, is fitted with a specially designed 22-karat gold oscillating weight hand-engraved with motifs inspired by artisans’ tools. By bringing these crafts, that were never intended for a watch, to the dial as canvas, Vacheron Constantin once again demonstrates its motto: Do better if possible, and it is always possible. For more details, images, and quotes from the artisans, visit ATimelyPerspective.com.
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