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+Beyond the Naked Eye
Vacheron Constantin premieres The Anatomy of Beauty by Louie Schwartzberg, a film that highlights the maison’s new Overseas Skeleton timepieces. THE ART OF HIGH WATCHMAKING DEMANDS EXTREME
precision, a rare skill acquired over many years of tutorship, and a genuine passion for the intricacies of timepieces. The Anatomy of Beauty, a short film helmed by director, producer, and cinematographer Louie Schwartzberg, explores the complex, synergistic relationship between high watchmaking and nature, a theme that has long been at the core of Vacheron Constantin’s DNA. Featuring Schwartzberg’s critically acclaimed time-lapse cinematography, the film underscores the parallels between the beauty found in nature and the beauty found in the details of the maison’s intricate watchmaking processes. For Alexander Schmiedt, president of the Americas for Vacheron Constantin, the collaboration with Schwartzberg perfectly depicted the essence of Vacheron Constantin. “He comes from a different angle,” notes Schmiedt about Schwartzberg’s cinematography style. “His unique cinematography captures parallels between the many unseen mysteries to be discovered in our natural world and the almost invisible tiny details 40 HAUTE LIVING hautetime.com
of our handcrafted timepieces that together create a beautiful whole.” The film also highlights Vacheron Constantin’s new Overseas Skeleton timepieces that debuted earlier this year in Geneva: the Overseas Ultra-Thin Perpetual Calendar in 18-karat pink gold and the Overseas Tourbillon Skeleton, available in both 18-karat pink gold and Grade 5 titanium. “The Skeleton Tourbillon is the perfect match,” explains Schmiedt when speaking about the film. “The beauty of the watch is decided on 1/10 of a millimeter. It is something you cannot see with the naked eye. You cannot rationally see it, but you feel when something is [mechanically] off. [These watches] embody the theme perfectly as it is the anatomy of a movement that creates something beautiful.” Both timepieces expose the incredible detailing and time that goes into the skeletonization as each component is reworked and finished by hand. As Schwartzberg aptly describes it, “Beauty is nature’s design of maximizing the flow of energy. Seeing the interior of a Vacheron Constantin watch is like watching perpetual energy.”
PHOTOS COURTESY OF STEFANIE KEENAN AND PRESLEY ANN/GETTY IMAGES
BY ADRIENNE FAUROTE
