Watches and Wonders 2022 in Geneva as told by Anna Blachut.

The annual watch fair called Watches & Wonders just took place in Geneva. This is the equivalent of fashion week for the watch industry. Geneva is the ideal setting for such an event as it is home to numerous prestigious watchmakers such as Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, and Roger Dubuis, to name a few. The Watches & Wonders annual event takes place in Geneva, Switzerland. It consists of an impressive lineup of brands that come together to announce their new watches, unveil their newly launched timepieces and innovations. There are also many local watch brands who host private events during this week.

I was lucky enough to attend several of the exclusive watch events in Geneva, which I wanted to share with you today.

SEVENFRIDAY at The Fairmont in Geneva

The first event I attended was a private watch viewing and dinner at the luxury hotel, the Fairmont in Geneva. The Zurich based brand showcased their new pieces. We met the founders who have successfully launched SEVENFRIDAY as a global lifestyle brand that creates industrial inspired watches as well as super funky eyewear pieces. The pieces are designed for individuals “who live everyday like its Friday”.

HYT Watches Moon Runner & Hastroid at Antiquorum Geneva

The next event which I greatly appreciated was hosted at the auction house Antiquorum. For the 2022 edition of the Watch and Wonders, Antiquorum in Geneva hosted the Swiss manufacturer HYT watches. HYT is known for their unique and innovative approach to time.

HYT introduced two truly remarkable timepieces: the Supernova Blue Moon Runner and the New HYT Hastroid. Davide Cerrato, CEO and Creative Director of HYT, presented these two new models to press and industry members from the 30th of March to the 5th of April. The whole auction house was transformed into a space world. With black-out curtains, one steps through to see a holographic projection of the new Supernova Blue Moon Runner. Headphones in black and neon green were available, once you placed them on your ears echos of the iconic Blade Runner soundtrack envelop you and embark you into the HYT fluidic concept of time and space.

Indeed, space is intrinsic to the watchmaker. HYT’s two new watches celebrate the ‘Heroes of our Time’ such as astronauts and visionary entrepreneurs. Technology is intrinsic to travelling in space, a characteristic HYT shares. How so you may ask? Well, HYT watches are made using mecafluidic technology. This is a the symbiotic marriage of science and micromechanics that means that the HYT timepieces tell time in a manner unlike any other watches in the world. This is because the watches have a fluid that circles around the dial and moves, in order to indicate the passage of hours. This fluid, in its extra-fine capillary, is the remarkable unique feature of the mecafluidic timepieces designed by HYT.

What is more, only 27 copies of the new HYT Moon Runner are available in the world. Why only 27? Well this links back to outer space, where the number 27 is commonly found. For example, Uranus, the seventh planet of the Solar System, has 27 known moons. It is also highlights the rarity of such a unique timepiece.

WPHH – Franck Muller 30th Anniversary Gala

Watches and Wonder is traditionally rounded off by Gala evenings.

I was invited to the WPHH Franck Muller Gala. The WPHH stands for World Presentation of Haute Horlogerie.

The Gala was hosted at the historic Domaine du Grand Malagny. This is a majestic estate owned by Franck Muller. In this stunning location, the watch brand has presented truly exceptional timepieces and laucnhed exciting world premieres. Including the Franck Muller Aeternitas Mega which is the most complicated wristwatch in the world.

This was a particularly special event, as the Gala was held in honour of Franck Muller’s 30 years of success in the watch industry. A milestone for the Master of Complications.

I have documented the event on my Instagram account A Stylish Story if you want to take a closer look at the behind the scenes of the event. Click here to see how the Franck Muller Gala night unfolded.

The new watches that Franck Muller Genève presented at the WPHH 2022, included:

Grand Central
Vanguard Revolution 3 Skeleton
Vanguard Racing Skeleton
Vanguard Yachting Crazy Hours (my personal favourite)
Crazy Hours 30th Anniversary Limited Edition
Vanguard Rose Skeleton
Cielo
Galet Moonphase
Double Mystery

The Franck Muller Crazy Hours model was one of my personal favourites. It is a watch like no other thanks to the unique numerals on the dial. Like a surrealist painting, a melting clock by Salvador Dali, this is a wonderful work of art for your wrist. I adored the Crazy Color Dream one in particular.

It was a wonderful way to wrap up Watches & Wonder. The week was filled with exciting new launches in the watch world. So it was a true honour to attend and be a part of such a special moment for the watch brand Franck Muller.

IMPORTANT MODERN & VINTAGE TIMEPIECES. AUCTION NOVEMBER 6 & 7, 2021 | HOTEL BEAU-RIVAGE | GENEVA

Geneva is the capital of watch auctions and the biggest auction houses including Antiquorum, Christie’s, Phillips and Sotheby’s are all poised for the upcoming watch biddings which will start on November 4, 2021. It begins at the Theater du Leman where the industry’s biggest awards event, Grand Prix d’Horologerie de Genève (GPHG) goes live. What’s more, this year marks the 20th anniversary of the GPHG (The ‘Oscars’ Of The Watch World in the watch industry).

Watch lovers and serious collectors are at the height of their happiness, as we have entered one of the most exciting 6 weeks of in-person events, auctions, horological forums and shows that are taking place in New York, Geneva and Dubai.

I was invited in mid-October 2021 by the auction house Antiquorum to discover the delightful collection of pieces that will be part of their upcoming Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces Auction that will be held on November 6 and 7. It will take place at the prestigious and luxurious Hotel Beau Rivage. Antiquorum is the world’s premiere auction house of modern and vintage timepieces and it was a true pleasure to discover the beautiful collection for the upcoming auction.

Antiquorum’s Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces Auction

Among the rare wristwatches in the auction, there will be a selection of vintage Patek Philippes, including three perpetual calendar chronographs.

My Personal Favourite: Patek Philippe

Indeed the Reference 1518 which is Patek Philippe’s original perpetual calendar chronograph watch will be up for bidding and this is the piece that stole my heart. Made of yellow gold with manual winding, it was my personal favorite. I loved the bracelet, it’s so unique and the craftsmanship was spectacular. Although traditionally for men, I love a gold wristwatch for women too as it almost accentuates one’s wrists.

Fun fact: this particular Patek is a watch that was produced in just 281 examples between 1941 and 1954. So it truly is a rare Patek Philippe find.

Wristwatches For Women

For the ladies, there will be some truly spectacular pieces ranging from Vacheron Constantin to Cartier and of course Patek Philippe.

Patek Philippe Reference 5298

The women’s pieces include a truly unique Patek Philippe Reference 5298 with a brown satin dial and diamond bezel. It is a very fine and extremely rare piece. This self-winding Patek Philippe watch with a diamond bezel, baguette and diamond indexes is the true essence of luxury in horlogerie. Indeed, there is a diamond set on the side of the bezel which is a signature of Patek Philippe that indicates that the bezel is made of platinum.

Fun fact: While most Reference 5298s come with a black dial, very few examples were fitted with the satin brown dial, making this piece very rare.

Crash de Cartier

There will also be the Crash by Cartier at the upcoming Antiquorum auction. This is an iconic model sought after by watch collectors, but what is the story behind this particular design?

The story goes that the Crash by Cartier design was inspired from when a client of Cartier who brought in his damaged watch after a car crash in 1967. The manner in which the watch was distorted inspired the jeweler Jean-Jacques Cartier to create the first-ever made asymmetric case of the watch. This manual wind, 18k yellow gold, and diamond wristwatch is a rare beauty.

Vacheron Constantin Set of Kalla Genève

Possibility the most impressive pieces, these two manual wind, 18k white gold watches from Vacheron Constantin are set with 258 diamonds. Circa 1995, Reference 33546 is a real show stopper.

If you are a watch fan, in addition to these events, auctions and shows, there will also be smaller watch-related exhibits planned around the world.

Useful Information

Geneva Auction Week in November 2021

Phillips, Hotel La Reserve, 301 Route de Lausanne. Session one, November 5 from 2pm; Session two, November 7 from 2pm. Viewing starts November 3.
Antiquorum, Hotel Beau-Rivage, 13, Quai du Mont-Blanc. November 6th from 3pm; November 7th from 10 am. On view from November 3.
Christie’s, Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, Quai des Bergues. November 8 from 2.30pm. Viewing starts November 4.
Sotheby’s, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Quai Turrettini. November 10 from 1.30pm. Viewing starts November 2.

A Stylish Story – Anna Blachut

Your luxury blogger from Geneva

Tag: Patek Philippe

Watches & Wonders Week Highlights by A Stylish Story: WPHH – Franck Muller Gala & HYT Watches at Antiquorum Geneva