Van Cleef & Arpels' New Poetic Complications Remind Us To Appreciate The Passage Of Time
Van Cleef & Arpels harkens back to its day/night complication with new Lady Arpels Jour Nuit and Lady Jour Nuit watches.
The beauty of mechanical watchmaking at Van Cleef & Arpels lies in its ability to transform ordinary moments into enchanting ones. The passage of time, the phases of the moon, the tides, and the capture of fleeting seconds can all be accomplished by hundreds of tiny gears and springs working in harmony.
Quite extraordinary, if we slowed down, we would appreciate it much more. With a Van Cleef & Arpels timepiece, this appreciation comes easily.
Every watch in its Poetic Complications collection uses movement as a source of wonder. Unveiled in 2008, Jour Nuit depicted a beautiful dance between the sun and moon across a stunning dial that elegantly expressed day and night.
As part of this year’s collection, the house introduces two new variations: Lady Arpels Jour Nuit and Lady Jour Nuit. Featuring a white gold case measuring 38mm, the Lady Arpels Jour Nuit is the larger of the two. As in the original, a 24-hour rotating disc brings the heavens to life.
FROM DAY TO AFTER-DARK
When night approaches, Murano aventurine glass shimmers with star-like flecks, accompanied by a diamond-set moon and stars. Daytime dawns with the moon and stars slipping gracefully beneath a white mother-of-pearl horizon engraved in guilloche and shining with snow-set yellow sapphires.
Creating this miniature cosmos begins with heating conventional glass to 1,200 deg C, while ore in the crucible imparts a shimmering, deep blue hue. It takes a month for the crucible to cool, after which it is cracked open to reveal the glistening result. Once the glass is cut, thin layers are extracted and a rigorous selection process ensures uniformity in colour and glitter.
With the 33-mm gold Lady Jour Nuit, the moon and stars are diamond-set, and the sun is yellow gold with guilloche details. To match the sky, a different guilloche pattern appears on the mother-of-pearl shroud.
The watches are powered by self-winding movements, and a glance through the sapphire crystal caseback will reveal a polished oscillating weight engraved with more stars.
Adding to the view is a tiny fairy gazing up at the sky, adorned with enamel decals on sapphire crystal. Each crystal backing undergoes up to 36 layers of enamel, with each layer requiring precisely adjusted firing temperatures, durations, and drying times depending on the enamel thickness. It uses vintage cast-iron machines and specialised fitting techniques developed by Van Cleef & Arpels, a testament to its dedication to quality craftsmanship.
The crystals also demonstrate two new technical approaches: the use of platinum to frame the fairy and the use of pointillism. With this 19th-century painting technique, delicate, multicoloured dots create a colour gradient on the sky, merging to create new shades and a cohesive image as they are viewed from a distance.
The two models are beautifully finished with diamond-set bezels and case middles, and alligator straps in shiny “VCA blue”. With an even more glamorous bracelet option in white gold with diamond-set links, the straps are easily interchangeable.
According to Rainer Bernard, Head of Watchmaking Research and Development, this interaction between metiers d’art and horology is a key component of the brand’s DNA.
“This dialogue is essential to impart beauty and mystery into the objects we create,” he shares. “This focus on co-creation lies at the heart of our Poetic Complications. Metiers d’art tell a story on the dial, while the technical mechanism—always invisible—brings the watch to life, showing the time as if by magic.”
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