Are automatons once again the face of luxury watches and clocks?
Tech becomes an art form as automatons enhance luxury timepieces by MB&F, Van Cleef & Arpels and Jaquet Droz
Look closely into the window of watchmaker Jaquet Droz’ Charming Bird timepiece and there’s something small and rather marvellous happening: a tiny bird spins on its axis, chirping and flapping its wings. Behind this scene, however, even tinier sapphire tubes and carbon pistons pump away to make it all happen.
The piece is part of the company’s Automata collection. The latest piece, launched this spring, is the Loving Butterfly. Another piece is set to be unveiled in China at the end of the year. Each is a watch, but then each is also something more than that: a demonstration of the ingenious use of mechanical movement not to regulate time, but create animation.
“An automaton prompts a sense of wonder,” says Jaquet Droz’ CEO Christian Lattmann.
“They’re much sought after by connoisseurs, even though most people don’t think of clockwork’s potential much beyond watchmaking.
“It’s hard to imagine just how much work goes into these pieces – the miniaturisation of the mechanism is a real challenge. But track the value of these pieces in the auction market and they’ll certainly reach new highs.”
