A Chinese market slump isn’t stopping luxury watch brands from launching spirited new pieces inspired by the Year of the Monkey.
A Chinese market slump isn’t stopping luxury watch brands from launching spirited new pieces inspired by the Year of the Monkey.
From birds to blooms, the natural world has long served as a fertile fount of inspiration for designers of metiers d’art watches – artistic timepieces that feature the use of traditional art forms. Add to this equation the enormous pool of Chinese luxury buyers – still important to brands despite shopping much less than they did a decade ago – and it’s no surprise that animals of the Chinese zodiac have become popular metiers d’art muses.
With this being the Chinese Year of the Monkey, several watch brands have released timepieces featuring various depictions of the simian creatures. Bearing influences such as Chinese literature and comics, the monkeys that deck out these dials are rendered using art forms such as engraving and enamelling. Swinging sensations, indeed.
MYTH AND MAGIC
Powerful, intelligent, and an enthusiastic eater of peaches, Sun Wukong – also known as the Monkey King – is one of the most popular figures in Chinese mythology. The Petite Heure Minute Relief Monkey watches by Jaquet Droz allude to the central figure of the 16th-century Chinese novel via monkey motifs – one sculpted in gold, one painted on grand feu enamel – surrounded by ripe peaches hanging enticingly from branches.
HIGHLY ANIMATED
Depicted in a spare and dynamic style that Ulysse Nardin describes as “comic-strip like”, the primate on the dial of this “Year of the Monkey” timepiece pays tribute to this animal’s playful personality. This rather untraditional design stands in quirky contrast to the centuries-old artistic technique used to realise it – champleve enamelling involves carving out cells and filling them with enamel. Available in a lucky (if you believe these things) limited edition of 88 pieces.
A CUT ABOVE
The Asian connection goes beyond just astrological animals in Vacheron Constantin’s “The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac” series. As with previous editions starring creatures like the Snake and the Goat, this year’s Monkey timepieces feature foliage motifs engraved in a style inspired by the traditional Chinese papercutting art of jian zhi. Etched directly on the dial, the leaves and branches have a sense of depth, creating a vivid backdrop for its simian star – hand-engraved in platinum or gold.
