SpotlightHere Comes The Sun: Le Régulateur Louis Erard X Atelier Oï
With just 18 pieces available, the Louis Erard x Atelier oï is a prized collector’s item, and stands testament to lasting friendships, superior artisanal craftmanship, and precision timekeeping
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The latest Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Atelier oï, recently unveiled in Milan, is a seamless time-only golden beauty that appears like a cross between a sharp sundial and a hypnotic spiral staircase. It captivates nonetheless for its visual kinetics, when the vertically stacked trio of blue baton hands for hour, minute, and running seconds, sweep across asymmetrical rays that stem from the coaxial and spread to the end of the 2D dial. This minimalistic design reinterpretation of the Le Régulateur is the joint handiwork of Atelier oï—a Swiss-based firm known for its ‘emotional and artisanal’ design solutions. This is the second Le Régulateur x Atelier oï collaborative timepiece; the first one was entirely in stainless steel with dark grey leather strap. With just 18 pieces available, the Louis Erard x Atelier oï is a prized collector’s item, and stands testament to lasting friendships, superior craftsmanship, and precision timekeeping.
Affiliation With Atelier oï
The ‘oï’ in Atelier oï is culled from the Russian word ‘troïka’, which channelises the synergy of a trinity. Atelier oï, for that matter, was co-founded by three creative mavericks, Aurel Aebi, Armand Louis, and Patrick Reymond, in 1991 at La Neuveville, Switzerland. This award-winning firm boasts of a vast clientele such as B&B Italia, Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Nespresso, Rimowa, and more. Incidentally, it was at Atelier oï that the current CEO of Louis Erard Manuel Emch had started his career in the 1990s. The firm leans towards the usage of natural elements into creating design solutions that amalgamate the principles of interior architecture, product design, and scenography.
The Circle Of 60 Rays: Louis Erard X Atelier Oï
Tapping into nature as a source for timekeeping, the firm turned to the sundial or shadow clock, an instrument dating to 1500 BCE, dependent on the sun to tell time. It consists of a flat plate with a gnomon (angular hour indicator). The sun ensures the gnomon casts a strong shadow on the plate; the place where it lands indicates the hour of the day. In the new Louis Erard x Atelier oï Regulator watch, the dial surface is golden 2N in hue, with defined rays, giving the aura of a bright afternoon sun. Instead of indicating hourly intervals, the rays fan out into 60 triangular demarcations extending to the dial’s edge to reveal the right minute as pointed by the central hand, also the longest of the three. The small hand under 12 o’clock shows the right hour, while the bottommost hand shows the running seconds. This unique dial, made from 60 asymmetrical slices/segments in matt finish, separated by ridges or ‘drawn lines’ in mirror polish to provide depth, engage in a play of light and shadow, and follows the design mantra coined for this project by Atelier oï: “To radiate from the centre outwards.”
The 50m water resistant stainless steel case measuring 42mm is mirror-polished, sealed on both sides with domed anti-reflective sapphire crystals. Its transparent caseback offers unobstructed views of the competent Sellita SW266-1 élaboré-grade automatic. One is immediately drawn to the details like the black lacquered Louis Erard symbol on the oscillating weight and the engraved hallmark stating ‘atelier oï x Louis Erard Limited Edition 1 of 18’. This automatic movement, used in the previous Louis Erard x Atelier oï timepiece, beats at 28,800vph, offers 38-hour power reserve, and is held in place by 31 jewels.
In a play of contrasts, the golden dialled Louis Erard x Atelier oï features a grained blue calf leather strap tailored with tone-on-tone stitching. For securing the watch onto the wrist, use the polished stainless steel pin buckle that is fitted with ergot bars for swift strap change.
With its reliance on geometry, architectural principles of lines and drawing, mix of polishes, light-shadow play, Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Atelier oï is an artisanal masterpiece, brightening up your day with a spot of sunshine on your wrist.
