A Monaco retail space specialising in trailblazing independent watch artistry is celebrating five years of not following the script.
As a general rule, products by independent watchmakers and mainstream luxury brands aren’t necessarily sold in the same shops: their clienteles tend to be very different. But in March 2019, that changed when Chopard opened its Art in Time boutique at One Monte- Carlo, Place du Casino. This space, ideally located between the famed Hermitage hotel and Café de Paris, features the beautiful products of a handful of creative watchmakers, clockmakers and creators of adjacent objets d’art.
“When I started the Ferdinand Berthoud adventure in 2015, I realised a number of things,” Chopard co-president Karl- Friedrich Scheufele explained at the unique shop’s 2019 opening. “One of them was that the [retail] positioning of these beautiful watches, which all of my colleagues here have in common, are basically quite difficult because we don’t get the space and attention we deserve, and we all have limited resources to accomplish distribution. After exhibiting at SIHH [now called Watches and Wonders] for two years—which was very new for me and for Ferdinand Berthoud —I realised something needs to be done.”
Mr. Scheufele, who has long been enamoured of independent watchmakers, went on to explain that Chopard had secured an excellent space in Monaco and rather than make another Chopard boutique or not keep it, he decided to create a shop with a multi-brand environment. “But this is much more than that,” he said. “This is Art in Time.” The watchmakers constitute a who’s who of the independent scene: Greubel Forsey, De Bethune, Bovet, Akrivia, Urwerk, Ressence, H. Moser & Cie, Laurent Ferrier, Trilobe, Moritz Grossmann, Petermann Bédat, Sylvain Pinaud and Ludovic Ballouard are on offer alongside the Chopard-owned Ferdinand Berthoud boutique brand and Chopard itself.
FERDINAND BERTHOUD BREAKS NEW GROUND
In 2015, Chopard’s Mr. Scheufele introduced the world to his pet project, a manufacture brand named after Ferdinand Berthoud, a historical Swiss maker of marine chronometers (1727-1807). While it may seem slightly strange for a world-renowned marque like Chopard to create a brand that is positioned adjacent to the true independents, that is truly how it was conceived and how it has operated since its inception.
Ferdinand Berthoud was called to life when the Scheufele family built a new factory in Fleurier called Chopard Manufacture for the creation of the brand’s manufacture L.U.C movements. “[At that time] I learned that Ferdinand Berthoud was born about five minutes away from Fleurier,” the co-president of Chopard remembered. “Not only did I become passionate about what he produced and what he wrote, but I found out quite by accident that somebody was about to relaunch ‘Berthoud watches’ in 2006. That year I was really too busy with everything else, but I still found it important to make sure that Berthoud is seen again, but in the way that I was feeling it should happen. So I negotiated the purchase of the rights to the name and the projects, which I had put away in my drawer.”
In 2015, Ferdinand Berthoud—which has been handled like a very high-end manufacture brand with limited production— was finally introduced to the world with the stunning and original FB 1 watch, winner of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève’s Aiguille d’Or in 2016. It was intended as a natural continuation of the work accomplished by not only Ferdinand Berthoud, but also the two generations of Berthouds that followed him. Since then, Ferdinand Berthoud has introduced only very limited numbers of watches, which have evolved with each iteration.
To celebrate the five-year anniversary of Art in Time, Ferdinand Berthoud has launched an exclusive five-piece series of Chronomètre FB 3SPC.4 in a 42.3 x 9.43 mm sandblasted titanium case. A version of this watch model won the coveted Chronometry Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in 2023, which is logical since the FB 3 collection remains the only one to date in the watch industry powered by a mechanical movement with a rare cylindrical balance spring that has been chronometercertified by the C.O.S.C. for accuracy. In fact, it is 2.5 times more accurate than what is acceptable for Switzerland’s strict testing.
The design of the Chronomètre FB 3SPC.4 movement was inspired by pocket watches, somewhat emulating the functional appearance of marine chronometers, and borrows from the style of Ferdinand’s nephew, Louis Berthoud. It comes in a round case recalling the curvature of 19th-century pocket watches. This case, however, fades somewhat into the background to make room for the spectacular sight of the very technical movement. Its time display is pared down to the absolute minimum with only hours, minutes and small seconds to be seen. A power-reserve indicator is engraved at two o’clock, but the rest of the dial is very purposefully left open so that the aesthetics of the minimalist yet complex movement’s components, their arrangement and finishing can be admired.
The FB 3SPC.4 comes with three appealing, interchangeable straps—blue rubber, blue alligator and grey alligator —to perfectly match the silvery white elements of case and dial. Each caseback bears three engravings: “Art in Time”, “5th Anniversary” and “One of Five”.
“Its very light case, rubber strap and exclusive colours bring a modern touch to this collection, renowned for its traditional approach to chronometry,” notes Art in Time gallery director Yohann Martinez.
DE BETHUNE BRINGS THE SPARKLE TO HAUTE HORLOGERIE
It is still surprising to catch a glimpse of one of De Bethune’s decorated-to-the-hilt beauties: the depth, shimmer and shine of jewels against the sleek original case and mechanics is nothing short of mesmerising. In celebration of five years of Art in Time, one of the most progressive brands working in haute horlogerie has allotted the very first example of the DB28 Tourbillon Jewellery to the Riviera retailer.
This exceptional watch is characterised by science-fiction-like mechanics and a sparkling, sculptural appearance—which is what the eye settles on first, though it is arguable whether the biggest attraction is the large, polished, blued-titanium “starry” dial section randomly set with white gold and diamond pins to look like a night sky, or De Bethune’s own incredible 30-second tourbillon at the six o’clock position. The 30-second tourbillon, beating at an ultra-fast five-hertz frequency, features a revolutionary patented annular balance in silicon and titanium. Encircled by a white gold ring, it is ultra-light: the tourbillon carriage comprising 63 components weighs only 0.18 grams (the lightest currently being made). It is joined in the regulator by a patented De Bethune balance spring with flat terminal curve (to keep its centre of gravity right in the centre) and a silicon escape wheel.
Despite all the sparkling distraction, it is still very easy to see the time on this watch as the 11 pink gold hour markers within a titanium hour ring set with 281 diamonds contrast beautifully with the dial and the hand-polished pink gold hands. All of this is housed in a 42.6 x 9.2 mm mirror-polished rose gold case set with 55 baguette-cut diamonds outfitted with De Bethune’s signature floating lugs. These lugs are spring loaded so that when the strap is secured, they pull down to hug the wrist, fixing the watch in place. The thin bezel makes the watch wear small but look bigger than it really is. The titanium floating lugs are set with 184 baguette-cut and 112 brilliant-cut diamonds, while the crown—placed at 12 o’clock for maximum comfort—is set with one beautiful rose-cut diamond, whose vintage cut is in sharp contrast to the sci-fi-like mechanics. The strap buckle in titanium is likewise set with 146 brilliant-cut diamonds.
“Art in Time has always been about more than just showcasing extraordinary timepieces,” said Pierre Jacques, CEO of De Bethune. “It’s about celebrating the artistry, creativity and passion that goes into watchmaking. As they mark their fifth anniversary, we are extremely grateful for the incredible journey and the timeless bond between art and horology. Here’s to many more years of innovation, collaboration, and celebrating the beauty of time.”
MORE THAN JUST A WATCH BOUTIQUE
The Art in Time gallery also offers a variety of clocks and adjacent art and objects by Abrasax, L’Epée 1839, Buben&Zörweg, Reuge, Around Five, Florian Schlumpf and Marc Newson. The latter might be the most prominent among these names for most, though many may not know that Newson has always been enamoured of the watch industry, collaborating with brands like Ikepod and Jaeger-LeCoultre during his long career. Art in Time carries Newson’s Hourglass, a beautiful object hand-blown from one piece of borosilicate glass. This special creation contains stainless steel nanoballs precisely 0.6 mm in diameter with perfectly spherical shapes coated with fine gold and silver that measure the time for 10, 30 or 60 minutes depending on the size of hourglass chosen.
The wall-filling clocks by Florian Schlumpf have been carried by the store ever since it opened. These objects allow the Swiss clockmaker to use his art and engineering expertise to explore his philosophy of time. As a result, Schlumpf’s clocks do not merely measure hours and minutes but present a personal introspective on the passing of time in a more mindful way.
Reuge, which was purchased by De Bethune in 2023, is Switzerland’s remaining luxury music box maker. Founded in 1865, forward-thinking and innovative objects have defined the brand just as much as its respect for traditional craftsmanship, which is evident in the wide range of products it issues. Likewise for clockmaker L’Épée, which was founded in 1839 and specialises in unusual and interesting clock designs.
“This is a wonderful project built not on assembling brands to draw public volume, but to work around the values and aspects of traditional watchmaking,” said Stephen Forsey of Greubel Forsey during the 2019 opening event in Monaco.
According to Mr. Scheufele, each of the maisons involved in Art in Time are about quality, creativity, innovation and audacity. “We are delighted with the results of our first five years in Monaco,” he says. “They exceed our expectations and reinforce the idea that such a place must exist in order to represent independent watchmakers with due dignity.”
