SIHH - A Tribute to Vintage
WORLDTEMPUS - 14 February 2011
Who would have thought that Lavoisier's Law could be adapted to watchmaking? The French chemist once famously stated that, "in nature, nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed" - but he might as well have said, "in watchmaking, nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is re-edited." The "myth of the eternal return" seems to bode well in the watch world, with almost every prestigious brand searching through its archives to come up with a contemporary tribute to some historical timepiece, leaving no milestones unturned.
So, why all the re-editions? Is it the need to glorify a brand's past, the necessity to play it safe in tough economic times, or the urge to please simpler taste forming the industry's new El Dorado? Perhaps all of the above.
Franck Muller has yet another answer, "most of the brands want to please China; it's a quite recent market that became paramount to the watch industry and since the Chinese are new customers still developing their taste, they are more inclined toward simple round shapes, smaller sizes and minimalist aesthetics - hence the classic collections you see everywhere." One must also take into consideration the fact that most of the brands had to prepare this year's collection some time ago, when the crisis was at its apex in Europe. Thus they chose for the most part less complex and more affordable models. Additionally, with a plethora of new brands appearing on the scene, most traditional manufactures perhaps want to showcase their long heritages.
Take two
"Heritage" was probably one of the words - if not the word - most used in press releases and presentations during Geneva's watch week. A whole new brand debuting at the Geneva Time Exhibition was even called Heritage Watch Manufactory. At the SIHH, where most brands are secular, the new-vintage/neo-retro trend was even more visible than in 2010 - it practically seemed to form this year's "golden rule." For instance, a Vacheron Constantin press release boldly stated, "The undeniable appeal that the Historiques collection exerts upon collectors stems from its mission of reviving some of the milestone models in the brand's illustrious history."
"Heritage" remained in good adjectival company: the terms classic, tradition, historic, tribute, patrimony, and vintage were blatantly overused. Nostalgiamania?
One might say the brands' creative departments could be getting lazy in issuing all these re-interpretations, but reviving an iconic watch (or turning a dated watch into an icon) is an appealing exercise in style for any designer. Plus, many enthusiasts find it honorable for a prestigious manufacture to show pride in its own past and showcase its history by crossing eras. Re-editions are really not that easy to make: the historical responsibility is great, the technical update requires assertiveness, and the communication of the product has to be perfect in order to capture the imagination of the consumer - which is why re-editions are usually favored by a more sophisticated, knowledgeable consumer.
Of course, some will say there's nothing like the original. But what about that saying that states the second time around is better? Here are the best examples of the new-retro, neo-vintage, revivalist craze at this year's SIHH.
SEE PHOTO GALLERY
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