Everyone who visited the exhibition At the last BASELWORLD, one could sense the renewed trend of introducing traditional arts into the world of watchmaking. For many years, there have not been so many luxury watches with enamel coating, engraving, set with precious stones or miniature paintings. But in contrast to the current fashion of embracing traditional artists, in the company Patek Philippe Their use is part of the company's 175-year tradition

Everyone who visited the exhibition At the last BASELWORLD, one could sense the renewed trend of introducing traditional arts into the world of watchmaking. For many years, there have not been so many luxury watches with enamel coating, engraving, set with precious stones or miniature paintings. But in contrast to the current fashion of embracing traditional artists, in the company Patek Philippe Their use is part of the company's 175-year tradition

For the artists who work with Patek Philippe This is a particularly lucrative partnership, not only because they receive permanent employment, but also due to the fact that the quality of the company's watches is of the highest standards and the watches produced by it must be perfect to a museum level. In fact, in many cases the watches are not sold at all but are transferred directly to the company's museum in Geneva. .

What irritates Stern is the confusion about the traditional arts of enameling, decoration, engraving, painting and inlay. “You can’t suddenly declare yourself an enamel artist or a miniature painter,” he says. He says there is a huge difference between the skill and knowledge acquired through a long apprenticeship with a background in art and history, and workshops where artists work like on an assembly line, with a division of labor and each person doing only part of the process without fully understanding the materials used, the chemical properties of the different colors. “Our customers understand the difference,” he concludes. “They know how to appreciate the depth of the colors and the combination of them, the almost organic refinement of the work, the quality of the gold, the design and style. These are the elements that make the difference.” ".

Thierry's wife, Sandrine, serves as the company's creative director and is responsible for all of the company's artwork and collaborations with artists. She says the long and complicated production process means that only small quantities of each of these watches can be produced, but that there are also advantages. "It's definitely a source of frustration for the watchmaker," she says. For example, we received 650 orders for the Sky Moon Tourbillon, for the 75 units that were produced. But there is no room for compromise. If we increase production, the quality will decrease, and we are not willing to accept that." This is the approach that dictates the conduct of Patek Philippe has been supporting traditional arts for about 175 years. .