Lady Jour des Fleurs

Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie 2016

This year, Van Cleef & Arpels illustrates the inventiveness and fairylike quality of its watchmaking universe with two emblematic examples of the Maison’s savoir-faire: jewels that tell the time and Poetic Complications™ watches. Its High Jewelry expertise has given rise to creations that capture the hours in their most precious finery. Time confides itself like a secret or glitters #amboyantly, magni$ed by precious stones.

From diamonds to colored sapphires , gems al so punctuate the Poetic Complications collection. Taking pride of place this year with a particularly rich selection, the latter brings together the refinement of traditional crafts and technical sophistication to express the sources of Van Cleef & Arpels’ inspiration. In bringing to life a ballet of butterflies, a swallow or a graceful fairy, the Maison has deployed unbounded creativity to reinvent the Poetry of Time™, charged with enchantment and emotion.

Poetic Complications Collection

In 2006, Van Cleef & Arpels celebrated its centenary with an innovative watch, on which time flows by in harmony with the seasons. Bearing a new vision of watchmaking, the Poetic Complications collection was born. Each creation associates technical prowess, creative research and a sense of wonder. Time is measured over the course of a day, a night or a ballet of butterflies. Besides their technical mastery, these intricate mechanisms offer precious moments of emotion that form an integral part of Van Cleef & Arpels’ imagination.

The rhythm of nature

A major source of inspiration for Van Cleef & Arpels, nature has contributed its rhythm and poetry to these two Poetic Complications creations. With the Lady Jour des Fleurs watch – evoking the cycle of the seasons – time flows by in harmony with the colors of the vegetation. A delicate foliage adorned with berries is brought to life by changing hues, from spring-like green to autumnal red.

This flora in perpetual renewal gives way for a graceful and aerial fauna on the Lady Nuit des Papillons watch. Capturing the ephemeral beauty of #ight, the Maison depicts a procession of butterflies glittering in the moonlight. Already present in Van Cleef & Arpels’ imagination in the 1920s, this theme here finds a new expression that evolves – like nature – from hour to hour.

An innovative chapter

With these two models, the Maison blends High Jewelry craftsmanship with the spirit of the Poetic Complications collection in a unique combination. Two new features are introduced on this occasion: the hour minute display with 12-hour rotating disk movement and a case measuring 33mm in diameter (compared to the usual 38mm).

Set with diamonds on the bezel and edge, this receptacle of feminine proportions contains a hand-wound mechanical movement equipped with a 12-hour module, developed exclusively for Van Cleef & Arpels. The reduced dimensions of the case and thinness of the movement are a feat of technical expertise.

Beneath a pierced over-dial, the rotating disk makes two complete turns each day to create an ever-changing scene. Behind the circling hands, an enchanting tableau is revealed that encourages gentle contemplation.

The palette of gems

To illustrate the story related by each watch, the Maison has turned more than ever to its High Jewelry savoir-faire. The dial is crowned by a sparkling over-dial with serti neige style setting, adorned with diamonds of different diameters (DE for color and VVS for clarity) so as to perfectly match the surface. On the Lady Nuit des Papillons watch, four rose-cut diamonds outline the wings of a butterfly, offering a glimpse of bluish tones through their transparency.

Between the over-dial’s motifs, a rotating disk appears, entirely set with gemstones. Carefully selected sapphires and diamonds form a subtle gradation, evoking a night sky.

The Jour des Fleurs model depicts shimmering foliage in dazzling shades of green, yellow, orange and purple. Spessartite and tsavorite garnets, yellow and pink sapphires and spinels come together to recreate seasonal hues. On the over-dial, berries in pink sapphires embellish the scene, while the back of the case is adorned with intricately engraved plant motifs.

Available on an alligator bracelet, these exceptional pieces can also be accompanied by a jeweled bracelet of particular virtuosity. The theme of the dial is continued in an elegant composition in diamonds and colored stones – sapphire butterfly wings or multicolored leaves fluttering in the breeze. Thanks to a specially designed system of articulation, the scene retains its shape and regularity while embracing the curve of the wrist.