SPEAKE MARIN IS CONTRIBUTING A ONE-OFF PIECE FROM ITS ‘ART SERIES’ COLLECTION, MADE EVEN MORE EXCLUSIVE BY THE UNIQUENESS OF ITS DIAL, TO THE ‘TIME FOR ART’ CHARITY AUCTION IN FAVOUR OF CONTEMPORARY ART. LIKE A BLANK CANVAS, IT WILL BE TRANSFORMED INTO A STUNNING WORK OF PAINTING. THE AUCTION, ANNOUNCED BY THE SWISS INSTITUTE IN NEW YORK, WILL BE HOSTED BY PHILLIPS AUCTIONEERS ON DECEMBER 7TH 2024.
The independent Swiss watch brand Speake Marin is pleased to renew its participation in the second edition of the “TimeForArt” charity auction, organised by the Swiss Institute of New York for the benefit of Contemporary Art.
To mark the occasion, the Geneva-based Manufacture has created a bespoke timepiece from its “Art Series” Collection called Promenade à New York (A Walk in New York City). Speake Marin welcomes this initiative with great enthusiasm, sharing with the artistic world the same desire to explore new paths in design, technical innovation and craftsmanship in the production of its timepieces.
The painstaking study of the style, the meticulous attention to details, the state-of-the-art calibres from the in-house workshop “Le Cercle des Horlogers” in La Chaux-de-Fonds, and the excellence of the handcrafted finishes, make each Speake Marin watch a true masterpiece. Like paintings, sculptures or other works of art, they are intended to evoke strong emotions in their connoisseurs.
Inspiration
The exclusive and precious one-off Promenade à New York draws its inspiration from Christelle Rosnoblet, President and CEO of Speake Marin, and her fond memories of a long stay in New York. The precious mother-of-pearl dial of this creation becomes the blank canvas on which the flashbacks of her leisurely Sunday walks in Central Park take shape. And the mind lingers on the picturesque Gapstow Bridge, reproduced in a magnificent micro-painting by the skilful hands of the artist who has captured and enhanced the many details.
A timeless design for the case
When it comes to choosing the watch of our dreams, it is the round shape that is the most attractive and the most popular. But creating a round case with a strong personality is not an easy task. A task, however, that Speake Marin has mastered brilliantly with its now iconic Piccadilly case. The harmoniously sculpted case with its soft, sinuous lines is made of grade 5 titanium with a polished/ satin finish. A material that is renowned for its lightness and resistance to corrosion and which fits comfortably on the wrist.
42 mm in diameter, it has a brushed middle case, a flared and grooved crown for easy gripping, embellished with the Maison’s logo and geometric lugs with screws securing the taupe leather strap with orange lining fastened by a titanium pin buckle.
Water-resistant to 3 ATM, the case features an anti-reflective sapphire crystal to protect the dial and the case-back porthole that reveals the superb calibre that powers this unique watch. The case back is hand engraved with the words ‘TIME FOR ART 1/1’ to underline the event for which it was conceived and its uniqueness.
A painting or a dial?
It’s a hand painted dial!
The Promenade à New York has a unique, one-of-a-kind display. A dial that required precise and meticulous preparation to ensure an excellent end result. After the selection the finest mother-of- pearl applied on a rhodium-plated dial base, generating fascinating light reflections, a grid was drawn to define the precise proportions of each figurative element. Blue brush strokes were then applied to the rear of the mother-of-pearl disc. This was done to add depth to the scene and create the effect of water reflections in Central Park’s artificial pond.
Brushes and paints capture the impressive Gapstow Bridge in an evocative autumn landscape, where the foliage turns gold, bronze and orange, contrasting with the blue sky, the imposing skyscrapers and the sparkling reflections on the water. So many details to get lost in, painted with great care and skill, creating an exquisite micro-painting capable of arousing emotions. Now, as yesterday, we seem to be walking in the park.
A painstaking job that took about 100 hours. A precious painting that shows us the passing of time. The Promenade à New York’s functions are essential in order not to interfere with the overall vision of the micro-painting. The central hours and minutes are indicated by the distinctive steel diamond- polished and rhodium-plated hands with a heart-shaped tip for the hour hand, a tribute to the brand’s British roots.
One of Speake Marin’s best-known signatures could not be missing from the dial: the small seconds at 1:30, represented by a rhodium-plated and polished hand in the shape of the emblematic topping-tool, echoing the Maison’s logo.
A high-performance movement
Promenade à New York is powered by the in-house self-winding movement SMA03, designed and manufactured in-house by Le Cercle des Horologers in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Featuring a micro-rotor perfectly integrated into the components that contribute to the slimness of the case, has a regulating organ operating at a frequency of 4 Hz (28,800 vibrations per hour) and a single barrel that guarantees a 52-hour power reserve in the unworn state.
Like all Speake Marin manufacture movements, the SMA03 calibre, comprising 147 parts, is a testament to high chronometric reliability and excellent craftsmanship. From the circular-grained mainplate to the bridges finished in Côtes de Genève and the polished bevelled profiles. The rhodium-plated topping tool above the integrated micro-rotor adds a touch of lively colour to the ensemble.
The exclusive Promenade à New York will be auctioned by Phillips Auctioneers, along with the creations of the other 24 watch brands contributing to the charity auction, at an estimate bid price between CHF 40.000 and 80.000.
The auction, part of “The New York Watch Auction: XI”, will take place in New York on Saturday, December 7th, 2024.
TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS
PROMENADE À NEW YORK
Movement
In-house manufacture self-winding movement, calibre SMA03, with fully integrated micro-rotor
Total components: 147
Casing diameter: 30 mm
Thickness: 3.9 mm (without hands)
Frequency: 4 Hz / 28.800 vibrations per hour
Jewels: 31
Annular balance wheel
Swiss lever escapement
Power reserve: 52-hour (when fully wound)
Rhodium-plated mainplate with circular-grained finish
Bridges: anthracite rhodium-plated with bevelled and polished edges, Côtes de Genève motif, polished rhodium plated micro-rotor’s topping tool and engraved inscriptions
Tungsten micro-rotor
Functions
Hours, minutes, small seconds at 1:30
Case
“Piccadilly” design, grade 5 polished-brushed titanium
Diameter: 42 mm
Thickness: 10.05 mm
Grooved flared crown with engraved logo
Screw-down case back
Domed sapphire crystal glass with anti-reflective coating on dial
Water-resistance: 3 ATM
Sapphire crystal porthole on the case back
Inscriptions on the case back: Speake Marin – individual serial number HT-01857 – The Piccadilly – Titanium – hand-engraved “TIME FOR ART 1/1”
Dial
Mother-of-pearl dial on a rhodium-plated brass plate
MOP disc painted on both sides
Handmade micro-painting on the MOP dial, depicting an autumn landscape with a focus on the Gapstow Bridge in New York’s Central Park.
Central diamond-polished, rhodium-plated steel hour and minute hands, hour hand with heart-shaped tip
Small seconds hand in the form of a topping tool, polished and rhodium-plated at 1:30
Bracelet
Taupe leather strap with orange lining closed by a grade 5 titanium pin buckle embellished with the Maison’s logo.
Unique piece
Ref: 914219550
Estimate price bracket from CHF 40.000 to CHF 80.000
