The popularity of that timepiece convinced the brand to turn that one product into a continuing series and given that lit-up pearls look just like the glowing balls of gas we see in the night sky, the Zodiac Lumineux series was born. Combining that technology with marquetry and jewelry with classic depictions of the astrological star signs, the collection was unveiled last year to great popularity. According to Van Cleef, the timepieces have been snapped up.
The Van Cleef & Arpels Lady Arpels Pont des Amoureux or Lovers on a Bridge returns, in a series of 9 references, ranging from a men's edition to a seasonal display. (Image shot by Toh Si Jia for Revolution)
The Lovers Reunite
This may be what prompted the brand to consider how to best revive some of its most popular Poetry of Time watches, and naturally, Lovers on a Bridge emerged as a forerunner. According to Nicolas Bos, president of Van Cleef & Arpels, “It’s probably the most popular, along with the Féerie Watch. It’s a story that’s universal, that connects with people from all backgrounds and cultures. This idea of lovers meeting on a bridge is a romanticised idea, but one that’s a heightened reality and therefore more emotional. It’s something you can relate to.”
The Lady Arpels Pont des Amoureux, introduced in 2010, featured two retrograde displays that had the lovers meeting at 11:59 twice a day for a brief minute. The original movement was a manual winding Jaeger-LeCoultre 846 caliber with a module designed by Jean-Marc Wiederrecht of Agenhor. Now combining the watch with a range of Extraordinary Dials, a complete collection sees the couples meeting in daytime and nighttime variations on the dial, as well as varying seasons. The Extraordinary Dials also tell the story of other legendary couples, from Tristan and Isolde to Ulysses and Penelope.
One of the pieces in the Extraordinary Dials collection presented sees the lovers unite on the dial with a combination of different artistic techniques. (Image shoy by Toh Si Jia for Revolution)
The Pont de Amoureux retrograde pieces come in daytime and nighttime depictions, housed in 38mm white gold cases with diamond-set bezels and crowns. The nighttime dial is crafted in classic grisaille enamel, which uses white “blanc de Limoges” enamel powder on a dark dial to illustrate the story. The bridge and lovers are crafted in white gold and applied on the dial, but it’s in the daytime dial where Van Cleef has revived a classic grisaille form, while modernizing it thoroughly.
On the dial, colored grisaille enamel in shades of pink and blue against a white background to depict the image of a false dawn brings the same illustrative contrasts as grisaille does, but in soft color. Some traditionalists will cry foul and say it’s no longer grisaille (which literally means ‘grayness’ in French). However, Van Cleef & Arpels reminds us that Lila Munoz’s painting of Red Flower, did in fact feature colored grisaille in a way.
The style in fact refers to any painting technique where translucent colors are overlaid on a monotone underpainting. In which case, Van Cleef isn’t contravening rules, just bending it slightly. (It’s worth noting that the brand is one of the first to use colored grisaille enamel in a long time.)
The technique of colored grisaille enamel developed by Van Cleef & Arpels. (Image by Johann Sauty)