SIHH 2014 – Novelty Roger Dubuis : la collection Hommage

The Hommage collection was first launched in 1995 at the time of the company’s founding, as a distinctive means of paying homage to generations of watchmakers, as well as to the noble horological traditions they faithfully perpetuate. It is currently experiencing a sweeping revival fully unveiled with a 2014 range that cements its place at the heart of the Roger Dubuis universe.

Symbolically speaking, the Hommage collection represents the fifth element radiating throughout the brand range: Incredible Mechanics. It is the quintessence around which the four Roger Dubuis worlds of the Warrior, the Player, the Venturer and the Diva – which respectively inspire the Excalibur, La Monégasque, Pulsion and Velvet collections – naturally gravitate. The Hommage collection pays tribute to these Incredible Mechanics, to the expertise and the proud horological traditions governing Roger Dubuis.

The SIHH 2014 will witness the introduction of a stunning series of Hommage watches capturing the very essence of classical horology. They also encapsulate the spirit of the visionary watchmaker who founded the company and humbly wished to honour his horological forefathers and the art they uphold. “A watch has always been an emotional object for me”, explains Mr Roger Dubuis. “In my youth, I was fascinated by those luminous dials that made me dream. My watchmaking journey began with the steeple of my village church and walking past the clock on the tower. That is how I fell madly in love with horological mechanisms. Having founded the Manufacture Roger Dubuis in 1995, I decided I wanted to create a watch to thank my teachers, friends and all those who had helped me learn and perfect my art. The result was aptly named Hommage. What touches me about the new Hommage collection is that it is created by a new generation, while maintaining the same initial spirit of gratitude to our forebears.” A true perfectionist by nature, Mr Roger Dubuis scrutinises the new Hommage timepieces and unequivocally acknowledges: “they are indeed simply perfect”.

Revisited and reinterpreted in a neo-classical vein, the timepieces in the Hommage Collection regroup the entire genetic heritage of Roger Dubuis. Like the master-watchmaker who gave life to this collection, the latter is endowed not only with style but also with a powerful character. The Hommage collection tells a story: that of its founder, Mr Roger Dubuis. It offers a chance to discover the creative talent of the man who in 1995 embarked upon an adventure that is unique in the watchmaking world. It portrays an exceptional personality who instigated the policy of earning Poinçon de Genève certification for the entire Roger Dubuis production. It serves as the custodian of his spirit of innovation and his quest for reliability. Vividly embodying the master-watchmaker’s wealth of experience, inherited from all those who have preceded him and admirably perpetuated by the current generation at work within Roger Dubuis, this collection gives rise to creations that will make their mark on horological history.

The collection focuses on traditional Fine Watchmaking movements and on craftsmanship skills such as guilloché work, enamelling and mother-of-pearl. Featuring classic designs made in precious materials and frequently issued in limited editions, the models in the Hommage collection embody a blend of aesthetic refinement and traditional watchmaking codes. Dedicated to Fine Watchmaking enthusiasts in search of excellence, they all proudly bear Mr Roger Dubuis’ signature on the case-back.

Other stellar Roger Dubuis timepieces at the SIHH 2014 will include the titanium DLC version of the groundbreaking Excalibur Quatuor, as well as a dazzling Velvet Haute Joaillerie creation. Each of the timepieces embodies another facet of Roger Dubuis’ unswerving commitment to excellence, as vividly illustrated in its 100% Poinçon de Genève-certified production.

The SIHH is a pivotal event at the start of each year that provides a unique showcase in which Roger Dubuis delights in displaying both its latest creations and in revealing fresh facets of its richly complex and sophisticated nature. This year’s edition, dedicated to the Hommage collection, will bring another opportunity to step into a place beyond time pervaded by an infinitely timely theme – embodying exactly the kind of visual and conceptual paradox on which Roger Dubuis thrives!

Wheels within wheels, a tribute within a set of tributes, rendering to Caesar that which is Caesar’s. In presenting this newly revived Hommage collection dedicated to watchmaking excellence, Roger Dubuis sensed that it was only natural and fitting to pay a special tribute to Mr Roger Dubuis himself, both as founder of the company and as the inventor and creator of the first Hommage model in 1995. The Hommage Tribute to Mr. Roger Dubuis admirably showcases the creative flair for watch movements tirelessly cultivated within the Manufacture. Its RD540 calibre powering a tourbillon, large date and power-reserve display is magnificently framed by a pink gold case and highlighted by subtle design details that reinterpret supremely classical design codes.

Mr. Roger Dubuis, the founder and ‘soulmaker’ of the Manufacture, continues to play a key inspirational role and his exchanges with Gregory Bruttin and the other members of the R&D team are of crucial importance. This quintessentially elegant new timepiece represents a glowing personal tribute to the man who first introduced the collection in homage to his forebears and to his art.

Roger Dubuis pursues its self-appointed task of reinterpreting the codes of classicism with a strikingly handsome chronograph that stands out boldly within a highly competitive field. Among the range of additional horological functions, the chronograph falls firmly in the category of so-called “useful complications” and is currently more popular than ever in an age dedicated to the cult of performance and sporting accomplishments. This pink gold chronograph model is powered by its very own ‘Incredible Mechanics’ in the shape of the RD680 movement with micro-rotor – a signature of the Manufacture Roger Dubuis movement expertise dedicated to ensuring excellent performance and optimising manufacturing processes. The back of the case is engraved with the signature of Mr Roger Dubuis. The distinctive shapes of bridges, springs and levers are all distinctive features of Roger Dubuis movements, and the 261 parts are all individually hand-finished to the standards of uncompromising excellence demanded by the Poinçon de Genève.

The snailed chronograph counters at 6 and 9 o’clock, complemented by a sweep seconds hand, bear eloquent testimony to the enduring strength of traditional watchmaking as applied to the modern task of accurate timekeeping. The concave bezel juxtaposed with the high flange bearing applied five-minute markers extending the raised applied Roman numerals and subtly lowered centre, all combine to create a mesmerising impression of depth and multiple layers. The latter is in turn further emphasised by the audacious sunray guilloché dial motif – which itself echoes the radiating arrangement of the numerals and is picked up on the crown surface. Such intricately interwoven aesthetic elements admirably reflect the complexity of the movement within.

Guilloché is a classic decorative technique based on an exquisitely repetitive motif that is often regarded as a symbol of fine watchmaking. As one has come to expect from Roger Dubuis, it is given an inimitable design twist calling for exceptional workmanship typical of the concern for details characterising the Manufacture. As delicate as it is precise and exuding an aura of technical sophistication and aesthetic charm, the dial is extremely complex to create and takes between 20 to 50 minutes to be entirely engraved with this pattern.

True to its custom of lending a contemporary touch to tradition, Roger Dubuis also plays with a blend of toneon-tone and contrasting colours between the bezel, railway track flange and guilloché pattern, as well as the chronograph counters, markings and numerals. These design elements typical of classical watchmaking, yet reinterpreted in a contemporary manner expressing the unique Roger Dubuis vision of its art, are designed to facilitate reading the indications as well as to enhance visual appeal. The eminently virile character of this chronograph with its boldly rectangular chronograph pushers and decisively ridged crown is subtly softened by the warmth of the pink gold, the beautifully rounded curves and the delicately leaf-shaped counterweight on the sweep seconds hand.

Clasped firmly yet gently to the wrist by a brown genuine alligator leather strap secured by a pink gold pin buckle, the Hommage Chronograph in pink gold lives up to a proud heritage while propelling it firmly towards the future. Short-time measurement has seldom looked so good.