The Lady Arpels Jour Enchanté watch brings together technical prowess and artistic crafts in a scene suffused with poetry. Within a 41-mm case, it reveals a fairy twirling amid a colorful, three-dimensional decor in a vibrant tribute to Enchanted Nature.
A miniature work of art
With this creation, the Maison brings to life a graceful silhouette picking flowers under the early morning sun. Light passes through generous leaves of white gold, plique-à-jour enamel and diamonds harboring a field of flowers aglow in dazzling colors. Set with yellow sapphires, these blossoms are rendered in high relief thanks to a new technique developed by Van Cleef & Arpels to offer the illusion of a boundless flowerbed: façonné enamel. Meticulously hand-sculpted, the white gold fairy spreads her wings made from sparkling, pearly plique-à-jour enamel for a luminous transparency effect.
In the background, affixed to a sky displaying three nuances of turquoise, the sun gleams with the radiance of its gems: spessartite garnets, colored sapphires or diamonds. Its rays are secured with a lifted setting, an innovative technique that creates the impression of stones suspended like dewdrops. The story continues on the back of the case, through the engraved decor illustrating the fairy taking flight. Two years of development and 180 hours of work were required to assemble this dial.
Enamel: a blend of tradition and innovation
Sublimating the passage of time, métiers d’art contribute to creating a wondrous universe on the wrist. Within its Geneva Watchmaking Workshops, Van Cleef & Arpels exalts and eternalizes this savoir-faire, thanks to an enamel workshop and a training academy in particular.
Beyond centuries-old methods, the Maison stands out for fostering innovative enameling techniques that make it possible to create high-relief decors. Each new challenge adheres to the composition designed by the Creation Studio and may require up to several years of research and development. Thus emerges a dialogue between science and art, between technical demands and stylistic intent, all dedicated to narrating the story held within the watch.
To give full expression to a miniature sculpture of delicately defined contours, the Maison has developed several complex techniques. These approaches include façonné enamel – a skill that took 16 months to perfect – and setting in enamel – which required a full two years.
Façonné enamel
The material is gently poured onto a stainless steel medium and then sculpted through whittling motions, sliver by sliver, to produce a three-dimensional form. After low-temperature firing to eliminate the tensions induced in the material, the enamel is carefully glazed at high temperature. Its surface becomes smooth and luminous as if polished. The full process creates a striking visual effect of volume and transparency.
Setting in enamel
This technique involves setting precious stones within the plique-à-jour enamel with no other metal components. To perform this aesthetic exploit, the stone is exactingly positioned in an indentation finely carved in the enamel. The piece is then re-fired according to a highly precise temperature curve to seal the composition. This process generates a remarkable “floating” effect which accentuates the precious stones’ glow.
The Extraordinary Dials collection
For Extraordinary Dials creations, enamellers, engravers, lapidaries, miniature painters and gem-setters apply their artistry alongside watchmakers. Each dial is composed like a miniature tableau, requiring many hours of work. Different fields of métiers d’art meet and mingle from one source of inspiration to the next, illustrating the Maison’s creativity and excellence.
Engraving on gold and mother-of-pearl, plique-à-jour, vallonné or façonné enamel, mother-of-pearl or stone marquetry, gem setting and more: Van Cleef & Arpels brings this savoir-faire to life, imparting a moment of poetry into each dial.
