More than 500 timepieces and objects will go on display at the Patek Philippe Watch Art Grand Exhibition this October, including some of the most important creations in the Swiss watchmaker’s history.
Experiential events are evermore the name of the game in luxury, as watchmakers put their own spin on the concept. Moving beyond timepieces, horology maisons have hosted everything from hands-on watchmaking masterclasses to extravagant, money-can’t-buy experiences with their brand ambassadors—think action-led activities with mountaineers and free divers, or private sessions with world-famous musicians and chefs.
Enter Patek Philippe, which has long danced to its own tune in terms of brand representatives (read: they don’t have any). The independent Geneva house has shunned the hype for a more steadfast dedication to time-honoured values, like heritage, tradition, expertise and innovation. That said, this being Patek Philippe, it may have already singlehandedly spearheaded experiential watchmaking, when the company held its first Watch Art Grand Exhibition in Dubai back in 2012. An immersive showcase of Patek Philippe’s know-how and history, the event—which is always free and open to the public—went on to be held every two years in cities around the world including London, New York, Tokyo and Munich. More than 165,000 visitors later, Patek Philippe is hosting its seventh gathering in Milan next month.
Running from October 2nd-18th, the showcase will be housed in the city’s newly renovated Palazzo delle Scintille, presided over by a magnificent 30-m-high dome. The 2,900 m² exhibition space features 15 themed rooms displaying more than 500 timepieces and objects, making this Patek Philippe’s largest Grand Exhibition yet.
Italy is a notable player in the international watch market. Not only does the country have a strong tradition of art and design, it features prominently in watchmaking lore—from the discerning local clientele who have propelled cult watches to global status, to those who helped save some storied watch brands from extinction during the quartz crisis. Italy has long-standing resonance for Patek Philippe, too. When the maison was founded in 1839, one of its first watches was sold to a client in Rome, a fact that will be honoured in Milan through a curation of early timepieces from the brand’s famed museum—including a 1897 enamelled, gem-set pocket watch belonging to King Umberto I of Savoy, and another from 1830 featuring a champlevé enamel map of the country’s northern region.
Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe, explains Italy’s unique draw. “For me, Italian customers hold a special place as they have this particular flair for design, fashion, and an avant-garde spirit,” he says. “As my father always told me, if a new model is successful in Italy, it will be successful in the rest of the world.”
The exhibition’s selection of watches and objects will offer something for everyone. Crowd pleasers include a full display of the maison’s entire current collection, from the iconic Nautilus and Aquanaut models to the most technically complex grand complications. The latter is a key focus, evidenced by a Super Complications room uniting a trio of the most prestigious pieces in Patek Philippe’s history. The 33-complication Calibre 89, created to mark the watchmaker’s 150th anniversary, will sit alongside its most complicated wristwatch, the 20-complication Grandmaster Chime Ref. 5175, created for the 175th anniversary, as well as the Star Caliber 2000.
Patek Philippe’s Rare Handcrafts collection is also highly coveted by collectors. These elusive pieces are regularly snapped up just as they’re leaving the Geneva workshop, with aficionados clamouring for the range’s painstakingly produced métiers d’art (miniature enamel painting, cloisonné enamel, hand engraving, microwood marquetry, guilloché and gemsetting). Twenty-seven Rare Handcrafts will be on show in Milan, from dome and desk clocks to pocket and wristwatches. Visitors are advised to make a beeline for the Burano Pocket Watch, a piece paying homage to its Venetian island namesake, complete with cloisonné enamelling in 70 colours and guilloché depicting various wave patterns, further glistening from gold and silver leaf paillonné enamelling.
Elsewhere, attendees will no doubt flock to the Sicilian Oranges dome clock, joyfully rendered in a rich palette of transparent, opalescent and opaque enamels in 49 colours, coupled with miniature enamel painting in more than five pastel hues. More than 10 individual firings, between 900-910°C, were needed to create the clock.
Eric Wind, founder of lauded watch dealer Wind Vintage, remembers attending the 2017 Grand Exhibition in New York, and how it transformed his home city. “Collectors came from around the world to see what Patek Philippe were doing, what special watches and clocks were made for the exhibition and to see watchmakers at work,” he recalls. “It was a very exciting time. There were dinners, events and collectors getting together. Every yellow taxi had the Patek Philippe Grand Exhibition display on top. It was huge exposure for the brand in New York—probably tens of millions of dollars of brand exposure—and it’s a similar experience for all the Grand Exhibitions.”
Milan, your time is now.
The Watch Art Grand Exhibition runs from Friday October 2nd to Sunday October 18th at CityOval (formerly Palazzo delle Scintille), Piazza Sei Febbraio, Milan
