Meet the enchanting ArtyA Purity Moissanite Curvy Tourbillon, the latest offering from Geneva-based independent brand ArtyA. Founded in 2009 by Yvan Arpa, ArtyA has carved a niche for itself for its audacious use of unconventional materials to craft stunning timepieces. This time, ArtyA’s inventive journey through the materials jungle lands upon moissanite, a silicon carbide variant known for its extreme hardness and unrivaled, flashy surface often seen as a replacement for diamond in jewellery.
1st seen in the round case of ArtyA’s Purity watch for OnlyWatch, moissanite is now used in creating the complex contours of a tonneau case housing a floating tourbillon. Moissanite is a lab-grown version of an extraterrestrial mineral discovered in a meteorite crater in Arizona in 1893 by Henri Moissan. Stuff of the stars, this mineral is strikingly rare in nature but has been replicated in laboratories to get a sturdier, more durable counterpart.
Back in 2011, Maximilian Büsser envisioned a space unlike conventional retail - an avenue where the world could resonate with the mechanical imagination behind MB&F. Fast forward 15 years, M.A.D.Gallery (Mechanical Art Devices), serving as the global pedestal for mechanical art, celebrates this vision with a breathtaking creation - the ML15 Helios by German artist Frank Buchwald.
Büsser’s venture that started with a unique depiction of horological machines, defying traditional norms and being equated to miniature mechanical sculptures, has transcended boundaries. M.A.D.Gallery’s vibrant journey has been graced by collaborations with an array of artists like the Japanese mechanical sculptor Chicara Nagata and creative studio Laikingland, to name a few, leading to the formation of an immersive platform for independent creators and a hub for collectors driven by mechanical storytelling. Its influence now spans beyond Geneva, marking its presence in Dubai, Taipei, Singapore, Paris, Beverly Hills, and Menlo Park.