Le Journal - Pages Automates

Transcription

Le Journal
Mirror of time
Mechanical Wonders
The special issue
World Premiere Exhibition NYC, 2011 10/26 - 11/26
Event
Pocket watch
with dual time zone
(MHL collection, 1870).
Oval watch with telescopic hands
(FEMS collection,
early 19th century).
Timely
Connections
T
Oval watch with telescopic hands
(collection 114, 2011).
2 Parmigiani
his is a world premiere event. For it even to be conceivable that these extraordinary Sandoz Collection
pieces ever leave Switzerland, they had to be shown
to the entire world. But not just anywhere. And
nothing happens by chance. The birth of the “Mechanical Wonders” exhibition to be unveiled this fall
in New York can be summed up in two words: natural connection. First, the connection that brings together the
Sandoz Collection and the A La Vieille Russie gallery. A story
dating back to 1941 when writer, composer and horological
creations and automata enthusiast Maurice Sandoz formed
close ties with the gallery where he acquired jeweller Peter
Carl Fabergé’s Imperial Swan Egg in 1954. Today, the Fondation Édouard et Maurice Sandoz (FEMS) has several works by
the Russian master jeweller.
Then there is the close connection between the Sandoz Foundation and the haute horlogerie manufacture Parmigiani
Fleurier. “It is a rare pleasure to restore a watchmaking work
of art,” says Michel Parmigiani, President-Master Watchmaker
of Parmigiani Fleurier. “To free it from the ravages of time
and of Man means bringing it back into a timeless truth that
is essential to our memory.” More than four hundred and fifty
years of watchmaking history have passed through the hands
of Michel Parmigiani. A heartfelt passion, and a rare one: that
of carrying on legacy and reinterpreting tradition. Since the
late 1970s, the pieces in the Maurice Sandoz Collection have
been entrusted to Michel Parmigiani’s greatest talents in restoration. From this trust, forged as the years passed, was born an
incomparable watchmaking adventure – the founding of the
Parmigiani Fleurier brand in 1996. Today, the restoration atelier shelters treasures that are being given new leases on life.
The Sandoz Collection being displayed at A La Vieille Russie
gallery encompasses fifty pieces, among them works by Fabergé,
like the Imperial Peacock Egg or the Imperial Swan Egg, tributes
to the gallery’s dazzling expertise in this field. But we find other
masterpieces, too: pocket watches, automata watches, cages with
Tonda Hemispheres
with dual time zone (2007).
Minute repeater watch
with sector time display
(FEMS collection, 1800-1840).
By creating three pieces
inspired by Sandoz Collection
masterpieces, Parmigiani
Fleurier becomes a central
element to a fabulous
legacy.These unique
watches are on display at
the “Mechanical Wonders”
exhibition in New York.
singing birds and animal automata. They serve as outstanding
testaments to the art of watchmaking, all making their first
transatlantic journey to the city that never sleeps, a cultural crucible and centre of the global economy. Having presence in New
York means Parmigiani Fleurier firmly establishes its expertise
in timepiece reinterpretation on an international scale. “We’re
not a restorer on the one hand and a watch manufacturer on the
other. To us, it is one and the same trade.” The two missions form
a whole: performing restoration provides a new exploration of
the history of watchmaking; designing original, contemporary
models continues to propel that legacy toward the future.
Most of the fifty works presented today are kept by the Fondation Édouard et Maurice Sandoz; others by the Musée
d’Horlogerie in the Château des Monts in Le Locle, Switzerland. Three exclusive pieces designed by Parmigiani Fleurier
were inspired by several pieces from this set of works and are
now exhibited in the very heart of the collection. Three contemporary watches springing from the imaginative creativity
found in masterpieces of the past. One contains a mechanical
feature already interpreted in one of the collection’s articles:
the Tonda Hemispheres with dual time zone. The works were
originally pocket watches, later becoming wristwatches. The
past meeting the present. A reinterpretation through the
prism of sober creativity in search of excellence. By presenting works from the collection at A La Vieille Russie in New
York, Parmigiani Fleurier is following in the footsteps of Maurice Sandoz. A great leap into the past which plunges us into
five hundred years of watchmaking history.
Bringing the Sandoz Collection out of Switzerland for the very
first time was already a challenge in and of itself. The story might
have ended there had it not been for the unfailing determination
of Parmigiani Fleurier to echo the genius of the greatest timepiece creations ever to exist. Now, New York is where the neverending dialogue continues between the excellence of the past and
the search for its expressions in the watchmaking of the future.
Oriane Laromiguière
Toric minute repeater watch with sector time display (2011).
Parmigiani 3
A La Vieille Russie
A timeless place
Bringing Back Old Times
This New York gallery has been an institution in the
realm of antique watches since 1851. This fall, it will
be the display setting for the Sandoz Collection.
Deep within the Parmigiani Fleurier ateliers,
this 28-year-old Swiss restores the splendid
pieces of the Sandoz Collection.
I
4 Parmigiani
P
aul Schaffer manages New
York’s A La Vieille Russie
gallery with his brother and
son. It is the ideal setting in
which to exhibit the Sandoz
Collection, redolent with
history and memories.
How did this exhibition come to be?
Four years ago, I wrote an article for the catalogue raisonné, helping draw up the specifications on this little piano made by Carl Fabergé
containing a music box that plays a Russian
melody. Fabergé is our specialty. When I visited the Parmigiani Fleurier manufacture, I
was impressed with the restoration work. It
was mutual love at first sight. Pierre Landolt,
Chairman of the Sandoz Foundation, then
suggested to organise an exhibition of Sandoz
Collection works. How could I refuse the opportunity to play host to such extraordinary
pieces? We’ll see the piano on display, as well
as two imperial eggs by Fabergé.
Raul Pages, Parmigiani Fleurier Restoration Manager.
DR/A La Vieille Russie
Inside the A La Vieille Russie
display rooms.
© Renaud Sterchi
nterrupted in the middle of his
work, Raul Pages, 28, talks about
his profession with great enthusiasm. Still, rather than dwell on
his meteoric career, the young
man prefers to convincingly extol the virtues of his trade. “I’m
just finishing restoration of a
pocket watch with automata that will be exhibited in New York. It’s fascinating to find
the mechanisms, to succeed in reconstructing the original movement.” After 150 hours
of labour, this 200-year-old piece will soon
find new life in the craftsman’s latex-gloved
hands.
For six years, Raul Pages has been cleaning, scraping, “de-rusting” and polishing.
Savoir-faire passed down through the generations that can be put to the test for two
weeks or an entire year. “We work with the
pieces one by one,” he says. “If a part is broken, the best-case scenario is that we can
easily recreate it from what is left. But if a
part is missing, we have to look for clues. A
tiny hole, a screw, or wear marks can lead
us in the right direction.” Raul Pages is at
once detective, technician and historian.
Even before getting underway with the object to be restored, he and Francis Rossignol,
the two “project managers” of the Parmigiani Fleurier atelier, analyse the problems,
asses the work to be done and can spend
days perusing ancient tomes “to situate a
work in the proper era.”
The methodology remains unchanged and
unchanging, like the philosophy of Michel
Parmigiani: “Keep as many original parts as
possible so as not to alter the nature of the
objects.” “He stops by the atelier from time to
time to share little secrets or techniques
with us,” says this young Swiss of Spanish
roots who, even before reaching age 30, was
already following an impressive career path.
“I was working my way toward a craftman’s
career. I got started in watchmaking, then
my passion for it developed as I learned.”
After seven years of study in restoration, entailing training in watchmaking and repair,
then two specialisations, one in building, the
other in horological complication, Raul
joined Parmigiani Fleurier. “You had to have
arrived at just the right moment,” he says
modestly. “I was lucky.” Raul Pages remains
discreet, just like the work he does on these
complex objects: “The goal is to be invisible.”
A man who remains in the shadows to ensure the work shines in the spotlight.
Exhibition
Portrait
Raul Pages
The gallery is across from Central Park
(781 Fifth Avenue at 59th Street, New York, NY 10022).
What are your ties with the Sandoz Collection ?
I met Maurice Sandoz several times. We exhibited his collection in 1950. I was 10 and
my father showed me the objects. We have a
family passion for objects: It can make us a bit
insane at times, but it’s what we love. It’s not
really a profession; it’s more a way of life. We
share a passion for beautiful things with Mr
Sandoz and Michel Parmigiani, who is carrying on his legacy. In 1954, we bought this
magnificent Imperial Swan Egg from King
Farouk of Egypt. Who was our client? Maurice Sandoz.
Your gallery already displayed portions of
the Maurice Sandoz collection in 1950. How
will this exhibition differ?
This is the first time such a major collection
has crossed the Swiss borders. There were not
as many pieces back in 1950. Without the collaboration of the Sandoz Foundation, Parmigiani Fleurier (which restored most of the objects in the collection) and the gallery, such an
event would never have been possible. Another highlight is the publication of a catalogue
raisonné for the exhibition, one which presents all pieces in the Sandoz Collection. But
the biggest change is the technology. Videos
made in Switzerland will be displayed on six
screens. It’s a rare concept that adds a great
deal. The objects are shown in closed display
cases, but, using 3D, we’ll be able to watch
them moving and hear their mechanisms
clicking and chiming.
Parmigiani 5
From Montreux to Harlem
An encyclopaedic legacy
Parmigiani, partner of the Montreux Jazz Festival, and
this great foundation, promoting and supporting
music since 1989, now make beautiful music together.
This three-volume work contains the most
comprehensive inventory ever made of the
Sandoz Collection. An extraordinary tour de force.
Montres & Automates
La collection Maurice Sandoz
© Bruno Cabanis
***
Bernard Pin
A la fin de l’année 1961, il entre au Centre de formation horlogère
Frédéric Lung afin d’y obtenir son certificat d’horloger-réparateur.
Ayant rejoint la France en 1962, après l’accession à l’indépendance
de son pays natal, c’est à l’ancienne école d’horlogerie de Morteau
qu’il poursuit son apprentissage. Le directeur, Georges Devillers,
un homme dont il n’oubliera jamais la bonté et l’humanité, l’admet
en seconde année puis, après quelques mois, le fait passer en troisième. Il en sort premier ex aequo de sa promotion en 1963.
Il choisit dès lors de se fixer à Paris. Après un passage dans différents ateliers, il entre en 1970 comme technicien dans la maison
Decamps. Il y restaure de nombreux automates anciens et participe à la réalisation de commandes spéciales.
En 1976, il ouvre son propre atelier. Alliant ses pratiques de la musique et de la mécanique, il se livre, parallèlement à la restauration
d’horloges anciennes et d’automates, à celle de mécanismes musicaux tels que les boîtes à musique ou les jeux de flûtes du XVIIIe
siècle. Autant de sujets auxquels il consacrera différents articles.
FEMS
Montres & Automates
© Bruno Cabanis
6 Parmigiani
Fondation Edouard et Maurice Sandoz
Montres & Automates
La collection
Maurice Sandoz
Bernard Pin
Maurice Yves Sandoz
(1892-1958)
Maurice Yves Sandoz est un homme aux multiples facettes. Bénéficiant d’une solide formation scientifique (couronnée par un doctorat en chimie), son inclination pour les arts, la littérature et la
musique l’amenèrent à s’y consacrer pleinement, à la fois en qualité
de mécène et de collectionneur, mais aussi en tant que créateur.
Eternel voyageur, il vécut à Burier en Suisse, à Rome et à Naples,
à New York et à Lisbonne, séjournant notamment en Afrique du
Nord, en Angleterre, au Brésil et au Mexique. Il fut par ailleurs un
hôte incomparable qui sut accueillir dans ses diverses demeures
ce que l’Europe de son temps comptait d’intellectuels, d’artistes
et de personnalités de tous horizons.
La passion de Maurice Sandoz pour les minéraux rares, pour les
mécanismes subtils des créations de Fabergé, les rencontres singulières qui jalonnèrent sa vie, en font un être d’exception au talent
polymorphe, à la fois écrivain, poète et compositeur.
Recueils de nouvelles, contes, romans, pièces de théâtre mais aussi
poèmes et récits de voyages se succèdent des années vingt aux
années cinquante dans sa bibliographie qui, pour une quinzaine
de titres, ne compte pas moins de soixante-seize éditions en cinq
langues. Le surréalisme et le fantastique sont inséparables de ses
récits, souvent illustrés, en particulier par Salvador Dalí qu’il fréquenta à New York au début des années 40.
S’agissant du présent catalogue, son souhait a été, au-delà d’une
rigueur dans la description des œuvres qui, selon lui, est le moindre des égards que l’on se doit d’accorder à leurs créateurs, de
faire revivre la mémoire du grand collectionneur que fut Maurice
Sandoz, ainsi que de témoigner du désir constant de sa famille de
la perpétuer.
Son œuvre musicale, moins abondante que ses écrits, est influencée
par Schumann, et l’école française des Duparc, Debussy et Fauré.
Essentiellement dévolue au piano et à la voix, elle comporte une
Suite chorégraphique symphonique, composée à l’intention de Serge
de Diaghilev, qui fut donnée en 1913 à Montreux sous la baguette
d’Ernest Ansermet.
FEMS
Three days after the exhibition opens, on
October 29, 2011, the Jazz Foundation of
America will hold its 20th Annual Jazz Loft
Party – five hours of non-stop jazz and
blues in an incomparable setting with
panoramic views of the Hudson River.
Scheduled to appear are:
Lou Reed, Ronnie Spector with tribute to
Amy Winehouse; Tom Harrell Quintet; Ron
Carter; Dr. Lonnie Smith featuring Donald
Harrison and Herlin Riley; The Burnt Sugar
Arkestra mashes James Brown & David
Bowie with Vernon Reid of Living Color;
Marc Cary; Black Rock Coalition Orchestra;
Sweet Georgia Brown & The Blues
Crusaders; Matthew Whitaker; Steven
Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra
meets Laurel and Hardy; The Harlem Blues
& Jazz Band, Davell Crawford, Thais Clark,
Red Morgan, Jessy Carolina and the Hot
Mess; Dr. G.B Burt; Plus one of the greatest
saxophone battles of all time and many
more surprises!
Montres & Automates
Bernard Pin
***
Titulaire d’un diplôme des métiers d’art, d’une maîtrise en conservation des biens culturels, et d’un diplôme de l’Ecole Pratique des
Hautes Etudes, il est actuellement doctorant dans cette même institution. Il est par ailleurs agréé par la Direction des Musées de
France et expert près la Cour d’Appel de Paris.
la perpétuer.
FEMS
© Renaud Sterchi
© G. Marshall Wilson/Ebony Collection via AP Images; DR
Hudson Studios (601 West 26th Street #1330, New York, NY 10001).
© Bruno Cabanis
T
Pianist Herbie Hancock and Wendy Oxenhorn,
Executive Director of the Jazz Foundation of America.
ouch, smell, see and hear. Watchmaking awakens the senses. The tempo
of a watch hand, the motion of a tourbillon’s: it’s all about rhythm. Watchmaking from music are thus inseparable. In conjunction with the presentation of the Sandoz Collection in New York, Parmigiani Fleurier has
chosen to forge ties with the Jazz Foundation of America. It’s the next
logical step for the watchmaker, which is already partner to the M
ontreux
Jazz Festival, an uncommon union in the world of watchmaking, so
naturally affiliated with classical music. Parmigiani Fleurier, ever true to its powerful
desire to stand out from the crowd, has chosen jazz, the music where tempo is king.
Founded in 1989 to protect both the history and future of jazz, as well as to promote
it, the Jazz Foundation of America provides support and assistance to musicians in
need, honouring the organisation’s motto: “Saving jazz and blues...one musician at a
time.” As trumpeter Quincy Jones shares, “I cannot even imagine the world without
blues and jazz, and I cannot imagine turning our backs on the very people who gave
their lives, their life experiences, and their music to us all these years, especially now
when they need us most. The Jazz Foundation is saving the music.”
The very special display of the Sandoz Collection, arranged by Parmigiani Fleurier at
A La Vieille Russie, could never have been orchestrated in New York without pulsating with the rhythms of jazz. Jazz is the music born in New Orleans, then exported
to Chicago and which flourished once landing in New York. So a duet formed most
naturally…this alchemy generated in New York between Parmigiani Fleurier, King of
Time, and the Jazz Foundation, Queen of Tempo.
la perpétuer.
Program
Bernard Pin
Maurice Yves Sandoz
(1892-1958)
***
The Foundation has given several concerts at New York’s legendary Apollo Theater.
Here, trumpeter Clark Terry (left) in 1955 before a Duke Ellington concert.
Montres & Automates
La collection
Maurice Sandoz
Bernard Pin
Edition
Charity
Catalogue Raisonné
Jazz Foundation of America
Montres & Automates
La collection
Maurice Sandoz
Bernard Pin
Maurice Yves Sandoz
(1892-1958)
Covers and pages from the three-volume catalogue raisonné
of the Maurice Sandoz Collection.
I
t could be called the “bible” of
the Maurice Sandoz Collection.
It is, in any case, the most
comprehensive inventory ever
produced. The collection of
watches and automata of
Maurice Sandoz had never

been described until now, except in two works published by the Musée
d’Horlogerie in Château des Monts in
Le Locle, Switzerland. The first, from 1959,
listed the items the patron donated to the
museum over the course of his lifetime
and was published a year after the collector’s death. The second, published in 1976,
inventoried all pieces kept by both the
family and the
Musée d’Horlogerie in
Château des Monts. It is a rare work ever
sought-after by luxury watch lovers. But
there remained a great chasm in true
coverage of this collection, which is now
bridged with this new catalogue.
“No comprehensive study of this collection had been conducted in accordance
with modern academic standards,” said
Pierre Landolt, Chairman of the Sandoz
Family Foundation. “Publication of a new
catalogue, with detailed explanations and
scholarly comments, was thus very much
needed.” The president gave oversight of
this ambitious project to Bernard Pin, a
restorer and expert in old clocks and

automata: “The ingenuity and excellence
of the work of the watchmaker-mechanics
deserved the same coverage given goldsmiths and enamel painters.” It was in
this spirit that the author wrote the two
hundred works specification sheets contained in the catalogue. Bernard Pin thus
gives readers “two complementary visions,
with the hope of thereby creating a bridge
between these two oft-disassociated disciplines.”
The catalogue is presented in three volumes. The first two describe the objects
from
historic and aesthetic angles, while
the third is dedicated entirely to their
respective technical information. “A number
of new, never-before-documented works
have been included in this new catalogue,
in addition to the pieces described in the
1976 edition,” says the restorer.
This new book allows light to be shed upon
the mechanical wonders from a scientific
perspective and makes it clear why the
Sandoz Collection is considered one of the
most exquisite of its kind.
Parmigiani 7
News
Parmigiani Fleurier
Events and openings
From Zurich to Beijing,
news about the watchmaker
from around the world.
A new Atelier in China
Parmigiani Fleurier is opening its third Atelier in the
centre of Beijing. Now Shanghai’s Lippo Plaza and
Beijing’s Sparkle Roll Luxury World and Legendale
Hotel are all host to the best Parmigiani has to offer.
The Atelier Parmigiani Fleurier, designed to be an
extension of the brand’s savoir-faire, places the
watchmaker at the very heart of the premises,
whence the craftsman shares explanations and
advice with watchmaking aficionados, but also
provides highly specialised service to the Atelier’s
clientele, tailored to each Parmigiani Fleurier watch.
The Atelier at the Legendale Hotel Beijing.
Also,
Opening of a
Studio Parmigiani
in Porto Cervo,
Italy, and in
Munich’s Hotel
Bayerischer Hof
(in October).
Nadia Dresti: Woman
of exception 2011
The Parmigiani Fleurier
Femme d’Exception (Woman
of Exception) prize was this
year awarded to Nadia
Dresti for her commitment
to the Swiss film industry. For
thirty years, this influential
woman in the movie-making
business has unfailingly
promoted cinema. Today,
Nadia Dresti serves as
Artistic Direction Delegate
of the Locarno Film Festival.
présente
la 34ème édition du festival international de
BALLONS
The Montreux Jazz Café
sets the tone in Zurich
The Montreux Jazz Café, already
having one location at the Geneva
airport, will open its doors
December 1, 2011, in Zurich (Dock B,
Zurich-Flughafen). Claude Nobs,
celebrated for his passion for music,
founded the Montreux Jazz Festival
in 1967. But his love of cuisine is
less well-known: The menu pays
tribute to the great figures of jazz
in dishes like the “BB Burger”
and “Ella’s Cheescake.” Guests eat
facing screens showing festival film
archives in a non-stop loop. Two
other cafés will open in 2012 –
one in London, the other in Paris.
© Thierry Conquet ; DR
PARMIGIANI le journal
CHÂTEAU-D’ŒX
21 - 29 JANVIER 2012
www.festivaldeballons.ch
Major Sponsors
Main Sponsors
Aerial Wonderland
The Montreux Jazz Café in Zurich.
The 34th International Hot-Air
Balloon Festival will be held
January 21-29, 2012, at Château
d’Oex, when the world capital
of ballooning will host more
than one hundred balloons.
Balloon pilots will compete
to demonstrate their talent
in races, precision trials,
and more.
is published by Fleurier SA, Rue du Temple 11, CH – 2114 Fleurier. www.parmigiani.ch
Design and production: Prisma Corporate Média. 13, rue Henri-Barbusse, 92 624 Gennevilliers Cedex, France. Prisma Presse Deputy Managing Director: Loïc Guilloux. Prisma Corporate Media
Joint Business Manager: Véronique Moulin. Editorial Director: Marc Dolisi. Creative Director: Vincent Le Bee. Editorial Manager: Alexis Tain. Texts: Oriane Laromiguière. Managing Editor: Élisabeth
Bommelaer. Designer: Gilles Chansigaud. Picture Researcher: Marina Mussche, Émilie Cardona, Alix de France, Frédérique Lajoix. Translation: TagLine.
Printing and finishing: Musumeci S.p.A., Loc. Amerique 97, 11020 Quart (AO).
Cover: © 2011 Musée de l’Horlogerie du Locle, Château des Monts, Switzerland, Photography: Renaud Sterchi. Others pages: © 2011 Musée de l’Horlogerie du Locle, Château des Monts,
Switzerland, Photography: Renaud Sterchi. © 2011 Fondation Édouard et Maurice Sandoz (FEMS) Pully, Switzerland, Photography: Renaud Sterchi.
8 Parmigiani