Embracing the art of straw marquetry to realize an intricate dial design, Louis Erard’s Marqueterie de Paille timepiece is a testimony to the brand’s commitment to traditional métiers d’arts. This timepiece, a manifestation of ancient craftsmanship meeting modern horology, is credited to the genius of Portuguese artist Bernardo d’Orey.
As a testament to his artisanal attention to detail, Bernardo meticulously selects rye straw of the highest quality. To create an abstract geometric design, d’Orey carefully arranges 28 straw pieces, each of which boasts a unique shape, size, and texture. The artist then applies varying shades of blue that augments the layered effect and beautifully brings to life the ‘Broken Ice’ theme. Every step is carried out with extreme precision under a staggering tolerance below 0.1mm.
Culminating Tudor’s brand evolution, the Northflag timepiece, first launched at Baselworld 2015, makes its return. This time, it brushes aside its two variant predecessors (bracelet or leather strap) and reinvents itself with improved design specifications, automatically enhancing its customer appeal.
In its new incarnation, the Northflag, christened 9140G1A0U, dresses in a polished 40mm 316L stainless steel case coupled with an integrated bracelet. It luxuriates in a comforting 12.7mm thickness and a comfortable 48.8mm lug-to-lug, down from 13.3mm and 50mm, respectively, in its earlier version. It effortlessly ticks the functionality aspect offering 100m water resistance along with a domed sapphire crystal upfront and a display case-back.