Vacheron Constantin has been a patron of the prestigious Paris National Opera since 2007. In 2010, it released the first in a series of 15 unique watches in its Métiers d’Art collection, inspired by the breathtaking mural painting on the ceiling of Paris’s Palais Garnier Opera House by French artist Marc Chagall.
Recently Vacheron Constantin unveiled the third timepiece in the series, the Métiers d’Art Chagall a l’Opera de Paris “Hommage to W.A. Mozart” at a New York luncheon co-hosted by the brand.
The dials of the Métiers d’Art Chagall & l’Opera de Paris collection feature miniature paintings using the centuries-old grand feu enamel technique, practiced by only a handful of artisans today, chiefly in Geneva.
The first of the watches features a faithful reproduction of the entire Chagall ceiling (a monumental work of some 200 square metres) on its 31.5mm dial. This watch, called Métier d’Art Chagall & L’Opera de Paris “Tribute to Famous Composers,” was not offered for sale and is currently in the Vacheron Constantin Heritage Collection.
Subsequent watches in the series will each focus on one section of Chagall’s mural and will pay tribute to one of the 14 great composers whose work is represented there: Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Wagner, Berlioz, Rameau, Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky, Verdi, Beethoven, Adam, Mussorgsky, Gluck and Bizet.
Hommage to P.I. Tchaïkovski
The first of these “individual” pieces, the Metiers d’Art Chagall & L’Opera de Paris “Hommage to P.I. Tchaïkovski” was released in April 2011 at the fifth edition of the Journées des Métiers d’Art (Artistic Craft Days), organised in France by the French National Institute of Arts and Crafts (INMA). The dial showcases in incredible detail the predominantly bright-yellow section of the Chagall mural that represents the Russian composer’s ballet masterpiece, “Swan Lake.”
Hommage to W. A. Mozart
The second legendary composer featured is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The “Hommage to W.A. Mozart”. The Mozart watch recreates another section of the Chagall mural and represents Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” —
Like the other watches in the series, the Mozart watch has a 40mm yellow-gold case and contains Vacheron’s manufacture Calibre 2460 SC, which has been stamped with the Geneva Hallmark. The movement is automatic, with 27 jewels and a 40-hour power reserve. The watch comes a semi-matte black strap of Mississippi alligator leather, with a polished gold pin buckle in the shape of Vacheron Constantin’s Maltese Cross logo.
