{"lien_WSTV":"","tax_name":"deprecated","tax_rate":20,"id_manufacturer":"0","id_supplier":"0","id_category_default":"491","id_shop_default":"1","manufacturer_name":false,"supplier_name":false,"name":"Les Univers Infinis","description":"<p><strong>M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art - Les Univers Infinis <br \/><br \/>A new vision of time and art <\/strong><br \/><br \/>\u2022 The latest addition to the M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art collection: a subtle blend of graphic art and decorative techniques in Fine Watchmaking <br \/>\u2022 An exceptional alliance between the artistic crafts cultivated by the Manufacture Vacheron Constantin: engraving, enamelling, gemsetting and guilloch\u00e9 work <br \/>\u2022 A tribute to the graphic expression of the tessellations concept, with three models inspired by the work of the Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher <br \/>\u2022 A mechanical self-winding movement,\u00a0 entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, approved in accordance with the new Hallmark of Geneva criteria. <br \/><br \/>For over 250 years, Vacheron Constantin has been nurtured by a philosophy dedicated to highlighting our shared cultural heritage. The M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art cultivated by the Manufacture serve as bridges spanning successive eras, by perpetuating sometimes neglected crafts with ancient origins. More specifically, the timepieces in the M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art collection lie at the crossroads of past, present and future, and crystallise the human challenges that have forged and continue to nurture these skills from generation to generation. <br \/><br \/>Painting, engraving, sculpture and the decorative arts in general are worlds through which human talent and personality weave close ties with time. The Vacheron Constantin M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art collection conveys the brand\u2019s deep-felt attachment to culture. The \u201cM\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art \u2013 Les Masques\u201d timepieces launched in partnership with the Barbier-Mueller Museum, as well as the \u201cM\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art \u2013 Chagall & L\u2019Op\u00e9ra de Paris\u201d and \u201cM\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art \u2013 La Symbolique des Laques\u201d series, all made their own contribution to a vision of time that requires the human touch in order to shine. <br \/><br \/>Offering a fresh illustration of this subtle alchemy, the \u201cM\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art \u2013 Les Univers Infinis\u201d series was also born from a determination to pay tribute to creativity, and lends Fine Watchmaking a whole new face that is both graphic and contemporary, stemming from a blend of mathematics and aesthetics. <br \/>Inspired by the periodic paving technique known as \u201ctessellation\u201d \u2013 and in particular by the work of Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher \u2013 the \u201cM\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art \u2013 Les Univers Infinis\u201d collection embodies several artistic arts exercised within the Manufacture: enamelling, gemsetting, engraving and guilloch\u00e9 work. <br \/><br \/>The dials reflect a sense of geometry, symbolism and motion, thereby suggesting an infinite juxtaposition of different universes. <br \/>Meticulous work has been effected on the colour shades so that the various hues are harmoniously combined so as to enable the themes to intersect without superseding each other. The rendering is exceptional and elicits a wealth of emotions, with the traditional crafts applied to watch exteriors serving to reinterpret the selective paving technique and create an incredibly mesmerising effect.<br \/><br \/><strong>Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement <\/strong><br \/><br \/>At the heart of these three timepieces beats Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement bearing the prestigious Hallmark of Geneva. Entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, it boasts exceptional reliability matched by excellent manual finishing in keeping with the grand Geneva Fine Watchmaking traditions. The polished angles, hand-drawn flanks, circular-grained mainplate, bridges adorned with a C\u00f4tes de Gen\u00e8ve motif and the oscillating weight featuring the elegant crossweave guilloch\u00e9 pattern, are all visible through the sapphire crystal case-back.<br \/><br \/><strong>Dove Watch: engraving, champlev\u00e9 enamelling, guilloch\u00e9 work and gemsetting <\/strong><br \/><br \/>Inspired by a drawing by Maurits Cornelis Escher, the dial of the Dove watch features a depiction of doves in flight, sublimated by the prestigious Fine Watchmaking arts: engraving, Grand Feu enamelling, gemsetting and guilloch\u00e9 worked are intertwined like tessellations to form a resplendent d\u00e9cor.<br \/><br \/>The white gold case is highlighted by a slender bezel ensuring a generous dial opening swept over by elegant hollowed hands. The case frames a work of art born at the hands of four master artisans within the Manufacture.<br \/><br \/>The engraver begins by drawing the outline of the doves on a yellow gold dial base, before proceeding to \u201cchamplever\u201d them, meaning engraving the motif before the enameller fills the cavities thus formed. This meticulous operation calls for infinite precision, since the repetitive symmetry of the drawing cannot tolerate any flaws.<br \/><br \/>Then comes the turn of the enameller. The infinite range of colours and nuances stems from the various oxides that may be associated with enamel, and of their combinations. It is up to the artisan to create and choose the perfect harmony of the shades which, once bonded by firing in the often, create this radiant violet hue. The enameller completes his task by applying a translucent enamel coating to the violet birds. For their white counterparts, he opts for an opalescent enamel that reveals the engraved motifs and creates a striking depth effect.<br \/><br \/>Once the enamelling is complete, the gemsetter highlights one of the doves. The diamonds chosen for their lustre and their clarity emphasise the graceful flight of the bird, drawing the gaze towards its crystal-clear luminosity.<br \/><br \/>Finally, the guillocheur, the master of relief, does his part in accentuating the depth effect of the dial. Due to the extreme difficulty of this process, it is extremely rare for an enamelled piece to be guilloch\u00e9-worked as a final phase. The expert takes the time required to patiently incise the material and thus create a truly lifelike depiction of the doves.<br \/><br \/><strong>Art of tessellation: mastering space<\/strong><br \/><br \/>Born in the mists of time, the art of tessellation \u2013 or paving \u2013 has been cultivated by numerous civilisations and oriental cultures. Named after the Latin word tessela, meaning paving stone or tile, tessellations are small interlocking squares that form a motif which occupies the entire space of a picture without leaving any gaps. It was doubtless the Moors who raised this technique to an authentic art form in the period stretching from 700 to 1500 AD, since the Islamic religion forbade them from representing human beings and any real objects. Over the centuries, these motifs appeared on pottery, tapestries, mats, wooden and tinted glass sculptures, among other media.<br \/><br \/>The art of tessellation has also been a source of interest for mathematicians, who have viewed it as an artistic expression of their science and their logic. Such scholars include Archimedes, the famous Greek scientist form the 1st century BC, who studied geometrical paving; as well as the astronomer Johannes Kleper, who presented a certain number of polygonal tessellations in his work entitled Harmonice Mundi. One of the most famous contemporary exponents of this art is Maurits Cornelis Escher, whose work shed light on and gave shape to various abstract mathematical concepts.<br \/><br \/><strong>Maurits Cornelis Escher: artistic geometry<\/strong><br \/><br \/>Dutch graphic artist and engraver Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1872) based his work upon subtle plays on architecture, perspective and space. Admirably associating perfect execution and imagination, he was a past master of the art of toying with visual senses and even reason in order to invent new spatial representations and worlds that exist only on flat surfaces.<br \/><br \/>His travels to Spain instilled in him a passion for the paving technique of which he saw some remarkable examples in the Moorish tiles of the Alhambra in Grenada, and the Cordoba Mosque. Mosaics and their symmetry show how a surface may be divided and filled with similarly shaped figures, contiguously positioned so as to leave no gaps. This approach encouraged Maurits Cornelis Escher to interpret, describe and exhaustively classify the various ways of juxtaposing motifs. This empirical work delighted and impressed scientists, especially crystallography specialists and physicists. Comprising a strong mathematical element, his work lies on the borderline between art and science. For the artist, the possibility of replacing the abstract geometrical shapes of the motifs by figurative designs became a genuine passion and an infinite source of inspiration.<\/p>","description_short":"","quantity":0,"minimal_quantity":"1","available_now":"","available_later":"","price":0,"specificPrice":false,"additional_shipping_cost":"0.00","wholesale_price":"0.000000","on_sale":"0","online_only":"0","unity":"","unit_price":0,"unit_price_ratio":"0.000000","ecotax":"0.000000","reference":"86222\/000G-9774","supplier_reference":"","location":"","width":"0.000000","height":"0.000000","depth":"0.000000","weight":"0.000000","ean13":"","upc":"","link_rewrite":"les-univers-infinis","meta_description":"M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art - Les Univers Infinis A new vision of time and art \u2022 The latest addition to the M\u00e9tiers d\u2019Art collection: a subtle blend of graphic art and dec...","meta_keywords":"","meta_title":"Watch Vacheron Constantin Les Univers Infinis | M\u00e9tiers d'Art 86222\/000G-9774 Dove Watch","quantity_discount":"0","customizable":"0","new":false,"uploadable_files":"0","text_fields":"0","active":"1","redirect_type":"404","id_product_redirected":"0","available_for_order":"0","available_date":"0000-00-00","condition":"new","show_price":"1","indexed":"1","visibility":"both","date_add":"2015-08-04 01:05:46","date_upd":"2016-01-06 17:01:33","tags":false,"base_price":"0.000000","id_tax_rules_group":"1","id_color_default":0,"advanced_stock_management":"0","out_of_stock":0,"depends_on_stock":false,"isFullyLoaded":true,"cache_is_pack":"0","cache_has_attachments":"1","is_virtual":"0","id_pack_product_attribute":null,"cache_default_attribute":"0","category":"metiers-dart","pack_stock_type":"3","id":3183,"id_shop_list":null,"force_id":false,"customization_required":false}
{"Compl\u00e9ment":"Dove Watch","Date":"2012","Pi\u00e8ce unique":"No","S\u00e9rie limit\u00e9e":"Oui","Nombre d exemplaire":"20","Sexe":"Unisexe","Gaucher":"No","Diam\u00e8tre":"40","Epaisseur":"8.90","Types":"Self-winding","Styles":"Atypical, High Horology","Calibre_autre":"2460 SC","Calibre distinction":"Hallmark of Geneva, C\u00f4tes de Gen\u00e8ve, Circular Graining","Affichage_autre":"Skeleton hands","Mati\u00e8re du bo\u00eetier":"White Gold","Particularit\u00e9 du boitier":"Sapphire caseback","Etanch\u00e9it\u00e9":"30 meters","Forme":"Round","Cadran":"Gold, Grand Feu enamel, Hand engraved, Hand engraved, Champlev\u00e9 enamel, Set with diamonds","Couleur du cadran":"Purple, Off-white, Silver","Index":"Baton-type","Verre":"Sapphire","Mati\u00e8re du bracelet":"Alligator leather","Fermeture du bracelet":"Pin buckle","Couleur du bracelet":"Black","Plus de caract\u00e9ristiques":"Movement<br \/>Caliber 2460 SC. developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin <br \/>Diameter 26.20 mm (11\u2019\u2019\u2019 \u00bc ) <br \/>Thickness: 3.60 mm <br \/>Number of jewels: 27 <br \/>Frequency:<br \/>4Hz (28.800 vibrations\/hour) <br \/>Number of components: 182 <br \/>Power reserve: approx. 40 hours <br \/><br \/>Case in 18K white gold <br \/><br \/>Dial in 18K gold <br \/>Dove set with 40 brilliant-cut diamonds. total weight of approx. 0.08 carat<br \/><br \/>Black Mississippiensis alligator strap. large square scales. hand-stiched. <br \/>saddle-finish <br \/><br \/>18K white gold buckle <br \/>Polished half Maltese cross "}
86222/000G-9774
Brand : | Vacheron Constantin |
Collection : | Métiers d'Art |
Model : | Les Univers Infinis |
Reference : | 86222/000G-9774 |
Nber of pieces : | 20 |
Complement : | Dove Watch |
Brand : | Vacheron Constantin |
Collection : | Métiers d'Art |
Model : | Les Univers Infinis |
Reference : | 86222/000G-9774 |
Nber of pieces : | 20 |
Complement : | Dove Watch |
List Price : | On request |
Diameter : | 40 mm |
Thickness : | 8.90 mm |
Styles : | Atypical High Horology |
Types : | Self-winding |
Calibre : | 2460 SC |
Calibre distinction : | Hallmark of Geneva Côtes de Genève Circular Graining |
Case material : | White Gold |
Case peculiarity : | Sapphire caseback |
Shape : | Round |
Water-resistance : | 30 meters |
Dial : | Gold Grand Feu enamel Hand engraved Hand engraved Champlevé enamel Set with diamonds |
Dial color : | Purple Off-white Silver |
Display : | Skeleton hands |
Indexes : | Baton-type |
Glass : | Sapphire |
Strap material : | Alligator leather |
Strap color : | Black |
Strap clasp : | Pin buckle |
+ More characteristics : | Movement Caliber 2460 SC. developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin Diameter 26.20 mm (11’’’ ¼ ) Thickness: 3.60 mm Number of jewels: 27 Frequency: 4Hz (28.800 vibrations/hour) Number of components: 182 Power reserve: approx. 40 hours Case in 18K white gold Dial in 18K gold Dove set with 40 brilliant-cut diamonds. total weight of approx. 0.08 carat Black Mississippiensis alligator strap. large square scales. hand-stiched. saddle-finish 18K white gold buckle Polished half Maltese cross |
Métiers d’Art - Les Univers Infinis
A new vision of time and art
• The latest addition to the Métiers d’Art collection: a subtle blend of graphic art and decorative techniques in Fine Watchmaking
• An exceptional alliance between the artistic crafts cultivated by the Manufacture Vacheron Constantin: engraving, enamelling, gemsetting and guilloché work
• A tribute to the graphic expression of the tessellations concept, with three models inspired by the work of the Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher
• A mechanical self-winding movement, entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, approved in accordance with the new Hallmark of Geneva criteria.
For over 250 years, Vacheron Constantin has been nurtured by a philosophy dedicated to highlighting our shared cultural heritage. The Métiers d’Art cultivated by the Manufacture serve as bridges spanning successive eras, by perpetuating sometimes neglected crafts with ancient origins. More specifically, the timepieces in the Métiers d’Art collection lie at the crossroads of past, present and future, and crystallise the human challenges that have forged and continue to nurture these skills from generation to generation.
Painting, engraving, sculpture and the decorative arts in general are worlds through which human talent and personality weave close ties with time. The Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Art collection conveys the brand’s deep-felt attachment to culture. The “Métiers d’Art – Les Masques” timepieces launched in partnership with the Barbier-Mueller Museum, as well as the “Métiers d’Art – Chagall & L’Opéra de Paris” and “Métiers d’Art – La Symbolique des Laques” series, all made their own contribution to a vision of time that requires the human touch in order to shine.
Offering a fresh illustration of this subtle alchemy, the “Métiers d’Art – Les Univers Infinis” series was also born from a determination to pay tribute to creativity, and lends Fine Watchmaking a whole new face that is both graphic and contemporary, stemming from a blend of mathematics and aesthetics.
Inspired by the periodic paving technique known as “tessellation” – and in particular by the work of Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher – the “Métiers d’Art – Les Univers Infinis” collection embodies several artistic arts exercised within the Manufacture: enamelling, gemsetting, engraving and guilloché work.
The dials reflect a sense of geometry, symbolism and motion, thereby suggesting an infinite juxtaposition of different universes.
Meticulous work has been effected on the colour shades so that the various hues are harmoniously combined so as to enable the themes to intersect without superseding each other. The rendering is exceptional and elicits a wealth of emotions, with the traditional crafts applied to watch exteriors serving to reinterpret the selective paving technique and create an incredibly mesmerising effect.
Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement
At the heart of these three timepieces beats Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement bearing the prestigious Hallmark of Geneva. Entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, it boasts exceptional reliability matched by excellent manual finishing in keeping with the grand Geneva Fine Watchmaking traditions. The polished angles, hand-drawn flanks, circular-grained mainplate, bridges adorned with a Côtes de Genève motif and the oscillating weight featuring the elegant crossweave guilloché pattern, are all visible through the sapphire crystal case-back.
Dove Watch: engraving, champlevé enamelling, guilloché work and gemsetting
Inspired by a drawing by Maurits Cornelis Escher, the dial of the Dove watch features a depiction of doves in flight, sublimated by the prestigious Fine Watchmaking arts: engraving, Grand Feu enamelling, gemsetting and guilloché worked are intertwined like tessellations to form a resplendent décor.
The white gold case is highlighted by a slender bezel ensuring a generous dial opening swept over by elegant hollowed hands. The case frames a work of art born at the hands of four master artisans within the Manufacture.
The engraver begins by drawing the outline of the doves on a yellow gold dial base, before proceeding to “champlever” them, meaning engraving the motif before the enameller fills the cavities thus formed. This meticulous operation calls for infinite precision, since the repetitive symmetry of the drawing cannot tolerate any flaws.
Then comes the turn of the enameller. The infinite range of colours and nuances stems from the various oxides that may be associated with enamel, and of their combinations. It is up to the artisan to create and choose the perfect harmony of the shades which, once bonded by firing in the often, create this radiant violet hue. The enameller completes his task by applying a translucent enamel coating to the violet birds. For their white counterparts, he opts for an opalescent enamel that reveals the engraved motifs and creates a striking depth effect.
Once the enamelling is complete, the gemsetter highlights one of the doves. The diamonds chosen for their lustre and their clarity emphasise the graceful flight of the bird, drawing the gaze towards its crystal-clear luminosity.
Finally, the guillocheur, the master of relief, does his part in accentuating the depth effect of the dial. Due to the extreme difficulty of this process, it is extremely rare for an enamelled piece to be guilloché-worked as a final phase. The expert takes the time required to patiently incise the material and thus create a truly lifelike depiction of the doves.
Art of tessellation: mastering space
Born in the mists of time, the art of tessellation – or paving – has been cultivated by numerous civilisations and oriental cultures. Named after the Latin word tessela, meaning paving stone or tile, tessellations are small interlocking squares that form a motif which occupies the entire space of a picture without leaving any gaps. It was doubtless the Moors who raised this technique to an authentic art form in the period stretching from 700 to 1500 AD, since the Islamic religion forbade them from representing human beings and any real objects. Over the centuries, these motifs appeared on pottery, tapestries, mats, wooden and tinted glass sculptures, among other media.
The art of tessellation has also been a source of interest for mathematicians, who have viewed it as an artistic expression of their science and their logic. Such scholars include Archimedes, the famous Greek scientist form the 1st century BC, who studied geometrical paving; as well as the astronomer Johannes Kleper, who presented a certain number of polygonal tessellations in his work entitled Harmonice Mundi. One of the most famous contemporary exponents of this art is Maurits Cornelis Escher, whose work shed light on and gave shape to various abstract mathematical concepts.
Maurits Cornelis Escher: artistic geometry
Dutch graphic artist and engraver Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1872) based his work upon subtle plays on architecture, perspective and space. Admirably associating perfect execution and imagination, he was a past master of the art of toying with visual senses and even reason in order to invent new spatial representations and worlds that exist only on flat surfaces.
His travels to Spain instilled in him a passion for the paving technique of which he saw some remarkable examples in the Moorish tiles of the Alhambra in Grenada, and the Cordoba Mosque. Mosaics and their symmetry show how a surface may be divided and filled with similarly shaped figures, contiguously positioned so as to leave no gaps. This approach encouraged Maurits Cornelis Escher to interpret, describe and exhaustively classify the various ways of juxtaposing motifs. This empirical work delighted and impressed scientists, especially crystallography specialists and physicists. Comprising a strong mathematical element, his work lies on the borderline between art and science. For the artist, the possibility of replacing the abstract geometrical shapes of the motifs by figurative designs became a genuine passion and an infinite source of inspiration.
Métiers d’Art - Les Univers Infinis
A new vision of time and art
• The latest addition to the Métiers d’Art collection: a subtle blend of graphic art and decorative techniques in Fine Watchmaking
• An exceptional alliance between the artistic crafts cultivated by the Manufacture Vacheron Constantin: engraving, enamelling, gemsetting and guilloché work
• A tribute to the graphic expression of the tessellations concept, with three models inspired by the work of the Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher
• A mechanical self-winding movement, entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, approved in accordance with the new Hallmark of Geneva criteria.
For over 250 years, Vacheron Constantin has been nurtured by a philosophy dedicated to highlighting our shared cultural heritage. The Métiers d’Art cultivated by the Manufacture serve as bridges spanning successive eras, by perpetuating sometimes neglected crafts with ancient origins. More specifically, the timepieces in the Métiers d’Art collection lie at the crossroads of past, present and future, and crystallise the human challenges that have forged and continue to nurture these skills from generation to generation.
Painting, engraving, sculpture and the decorative arts in general are worlds through which human talent and personality weave close ties with time. The Vacheron Constantin Métiers d’Art collection conveys the brand’s deep-felt attachment to culture. The “Métiers d’Art – Les Masques” timepieces launched in partnership with the Barbier-Mueller Museum, as well as the “Métiers d’Art – Chagall & L’Opéra de Paris” and “Métiers d’Art – La Symbolique des Laques” series, all made their own contribution to a vision of time that requires the human touch in order to shine.
Offering a fresh illustration of this subtle alchemy, the “Métiers d’Art – Les Univers Infinis” series was also born from a determination to pay tribute to creativity, and lends Fine Watchmaking a whole new face that is both graphic and contemporary, stemming from a blend of mathematics and aesthetics.
Inspired by the periodic paving technique known as “tessellation” – and in particular by the work of Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher – the “Métiers d’Art – Les Univers Infinis” collection embodies several artistic arts exercised within the Manufacture: enamelling, gemsetting, engraving and guilloché work.
The dials reflect a sense of geometry, symbolism and motion, thereby suggesting an infinite juxtaposition of different universes.
Meticulous work has been effected on the colour shades so that the various hues are harmoniously combined so as to enable the themes to intersect without superseding each other. The rendering is exceptional and elicits a wealth of emotions, with the traditional crafts applied to watch exteriors serving to reinterpret the selective paving technique and create an incredibly mesmerising effect.
Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement
At the heart of these three timepieces beats Calibre 2460, a mechanical self-winding movement bearing the prestigious Hallmark of Geneva. Entirely developed and crafted by Vacheron Constantin, it boasts exceptional reliability matched by excellent manual finishing in keeping with the grand Geneva Fine Watchmaking traditions. The polished angles, hand-drawn flanks, circular-grained mainplate, bridges adorned with a Côtes de Genève motif and the oscillating weight featuring the elegant crossweave guilloché pattern, are all visible through the sapphire crystal case-back.
Dove Watch: engraving, champlevé enamelling, guilloché work and gemsetting
Inspired by a drawing by Maurits Cornelis Escher, the dial of the Dove watch features a depiction of doves in flight, sublimated by the prestigious Fine Watchmaking arts: engraving, Grand Feu enamelling, gemsetting and guilloché worked are intertwined like tessellations to form a resplendent décor.
The white gold case is highlighted by a slender bezel ensuring a generous dial opening swept over by elegant hollowed hands. The case frames a work of art born at the hands of four master artisans within the Manufacture.
The engraver begins by drawing the outline of the doves on a yellow gold dial base, before proceeding to “champlever” them, meaning engraving the motif before the enameller fills the cavities thus formed. This meticulous operation calls for infinite precision, since the repetitive symmetry of the drawing cannot tolerate any flaws.
Then comes the turn of the enameller. The infinite range of colours and nuances stems from the various oxides that may be associated with enamel, and of their combinations. It is up to the artisan to create and choose the perfect harmony of the shades which, once bonded by firing in the often, create this radiant violet hue. The enameller completes his task by applying a translucent enamel coating to the violet birds. For their white counterparts, he opts for an opalescent enamel that reveals the engraved motifs and creates a striking depth effect.
Once the enamelling is complete, the gemsetter highlights one of the doves. The diamonds chosen for their lustre and their clarity emphasise the graceful flight of the bird, drawing the gaze towards its crystal-clear luminosity.
Finally, the guillocheur, the master of relief, does his part in accentuating the depth effect of the dial. Due to the extreme difficulty of this process, it is extremely rare for an enamelled piece to be guilloché-worked as a final phase. The expert takes the time required to patiently incise the material and thus create a truly lifelike depiction of the doves.
Art of tessellation: mastering space
Born in the mists of time, the art of tessellation – or paving – has been cultivated by numerous civilisations and oriental cultures. Named after the Latin word tessela, meaning paving stone or tile, tessellations are small interlocking squares that form a motif which occupies the entire space of a picture without leaving any gaps. It was doubtless the Moors who raised this technique to an authentic art form in the period stretching from 700 to 1500 AD, since the Islamic religion forbade them from representing human beings and any real objects. Over the centuries, these motifs appeared on pottery, tapestries, mats, wooden and tinted glass sculptures, among other media.
The art of tessellation has also been a source of interest for mathematicians, who have viewed it as an artistic expression of their science and their logic. Such scholars include Archimedes, the famous Greek scientist form the 1st century BC, who studied geometrical paving; as well as the astronomer Johannes Kleper, who presented a certain number of polygonal tessellations in his work entitled Harmonice Mundi. One of the most famous contemporary exponents of this art is Maurits Cornelis Escher, whose work shed light on and gave shape to various abstract mathematical concepts.
Maurits Cornelis Escher: artistic geometry
Dutch graphic artist and engraver Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1872) based his work upon subtle plays on architecture, perspective and space. Admirably associating perfect execution and imagination, he was a past master of the art of toying with visual senses and even reason in order to invent new spatial representations and worlds that exist only on flat surfaces.
His travels to Spain instilled in him a passion for the paving technique of which he saw some remarkable examples in the Moorish tiles of the Alhambra in Grenada, and the Cordoba Mosque. Mosaics and their symmetry show how a surface may be divided and filled with similarly shaped figures, contiguously positioned so as to leave no gaps. This approach encouraged Maurits Cornelis Escher to interpret, describe and exhaustively classify the various ways of juxtaposing motifs. This empirical work delighted and impressed scientists, especially crystallography specialists and physicists. Comprising a strong mathematical element, his work lies on the borderline between art and science. For the artist, the possibility of replacing the abstract geometrical shapes of the motifs by figurative designs became a genuine passion and an infinite source of inspiration.
Brand : | Vacheron Constantin |
Collection : | Métiers d'Art |
Model : | Les Univers Infinis |
Reference : | 86222/000G-9774 |
Nber of pieces : | 20 |
Complement : | Dove Watch |
List Price : | On request |
Diameter : | 40 mm |
Thickness : | 8.90 mm |
Styles : | Atypical High Horology |
Types : | Self-winding |
Calibre : | 2460 SC |
Calibre distinction : | Hallmark of Geneva Côtes de Genève Circular Graining |
Case material : | White Gold |
Case peculiarity : | Sapphire caseback |
Shape : | Round |
Water-resistance : | 30 meters |
Dial : | Gold Grand Feu enamel Hand engraved Hand engraved Champlevé enamel Set with diamonds |
Dial color : | Purple Off-white Silver |
Display : | Skeleton hands |
Indexes : | Baton-type |
Glass : | Sapphire |
Strap material : | Alligator leather |
Strap color : | Black |
Strap clasp : | Pin buckle |
More characteristics : | Movement Caliber 2460 SC. developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin Diameter 26.20 mm (11’’’ ¼ ) Thickness: 3.60 mm Number of jewels: 27 Frequency: 4Hz (28.800 vibrations/hour) Number of components: 182 Power reserve: approx. 40 hours Case in 18K white gold Dial in 18K gold Dove set with 40 brilliant-cut diamonds. total weight of approx. 0.08 carat Black Mississippiensis alligator strap. large square scales. hand-stiched. saddle-finish 18K white gold buckle Polished half Maltese cross |