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SpotlightWatches and Wonders 2021: On The Quest For Innovation With H. Moser & Cie’s Minimalism and Louis Moinet’s Opulence

From minimalistic to extravagant, H. Moser & Cie. and Louis Moinet unveiled a wide array of all-new timepieces—representing two ends of the haute horlogerie spectrum—at the 2021 edition of Watches and Wonders. Take a look at some of their new releases

Alind Chauhan April 13, 2021

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Over the course of a week-long digital edition of the Watches and Wonders Geneva, around 40 luxury watchmakers presented some of the most path-breaking and exquisite timepieces in the horological industry. Featuring new and improved technology, a wide range of materials, a variety of complications, and a balanced combination of traditional and futuristic designs, the watches not only symbolise the culmination of years of research and development by the brands but also pave the way for generations to come. In ways that couldn’t be more different from each other, H. Moser & Cie. and Louis Moinet are both torch-bearers of the craft of watchmaking.

Moser-Eraser-Watch — H. Moser stuck to their ‘less is more’ approach at Watches and Wonders 2021. Here is their Endeavour Centre Seconds Concept X seconde/seconde/—the poster child for their ‘Erase the brand’ campaign

On the one hand, we have the most subtle and minimalistic timepieces of H. Moser & Cie. that barely have the hint of the brand’s name, emblem or even markers. On the other hand, we have opulent watches by Louis Moinet that are nothing short of extravagant. However, even though both the brands represent two completely opposite philosophies of haute horlogerie, they are taking the watchmaking innovation forward in their own ways. Let’s see how.

H. Moser & Cie: Less Is More

Back in 2015, when H. Moser & Cie. introduced their Concept dial series, the whole horological industry was pushed into a frenzy. With the aim of shining the spotlight away from the brand and back onto the product and the ingenious engineering behind it, the Swiss watchmaker removed all the traditional elements, including the logo, from the timepieces’ dial. Ironically, the decision of erasing every sign of recognition or branding catapulted Moser to the upper echelons of fame and glory in the watchmaking world. Over the years, the Swiss watchmaker’s timepieces have become known for their minimalism, understatement, and colourful fumé dials. In 2021, Moser have continued to stick to their philosophy by adding brand-new iterations to the Concept collection.

At Watches and Wonders, Moser unveiled their first-ever timepiece featuring a natural stone dial with a tourbillon movement. Made of the tiger’s eye—a semi-precious stone that mimics the patterns of the fierce feline’s irises—the dial of Endeavour Tourbillon Concept Tiger’s Eye comes to life as it catches the light, and its beauty can be appreciated from different angles. Bereft of any markers or logo, the dial only features a central two-hand timekeeping system and a flying tourbillon at six o’clock. The 40mm timepiece comes in two variants, including the Ox’s Eye version, with striking horizontal layers in a deep red tone, presented in a red gold case and attached to a brown leather strap. The other iteration sports a Falcon’s Eye dial in elegant blue, housed in a white gold case, along with a blue leather strap. Powered by the in-house self-winding movement, HMC 804, the watch has a power reserve of an impressive 72 hours. Also, the timepieces will be limited to just 50 units per variant due to the complex method of producing them and the difficulty in sourcing the stones that have regular parallel lines.

However, the Concept Tiger’s Eye is but the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Moser’s quest for building instantly recognisable luxury timepieces. Here is the Endeavour Centre Seconds Concept X seconde/seconde/ constructed in collaboration with Parisian artist Romaric Andre, alias seconde/seconde/. What makes the timepiece really unique is its hour hand, which is in the shape of a pixelated eraser instead of a polished and lean traditional hand. Talking about the watch, Andre said that he chose the eraser shape as it symbolised ‘removal and minimalism’, both notions held dearly at Moser. Without the presence of the brand’s name, numerals, or indices, the ‘funky blue’ dial of the timepiece seems to have been wiped clean by the eraser. But the watch is simplistic only in looks as at the heart of its 40mm stainless steel case beats the self-winding HMC 200—a culmination of Moser’s 200 years of expertise. Entirely designed, produced, assembled and adjusted by the brand, the movement comes with a frequency of 21,600vph and a power reserve of 72 hours.

The Endeavour Centre Seconds Concept X seconde/seconde/ has been realised in collaboration with Parisian artist Romaric Andre, alias seconde/seconde/. What makes the timepiece really unique is its hour hand, which is in the shape of a pixelated eraser instead of a polished and lean traditional hand

Standing in slight contrast with the aforementioned timepieces are the two new additions to Moser’s Pioneer collection. Unlike the Concept range timepieces, the Pioneer Centre Seconds Mega Cool and Pioneer Tourbillon Mega Cool have dark grey anthracite markers, and the brand’s logo printed with a translucent material—appearing only very discreetly on the dial, and at certain angles. Despite these additional features, the watches remain minimalistic and subtle. The brand have chosen to present them with ‘blue lagoon’ fumé dials, which are reminiscent of the shimmering turquoise waters of an island paradise and provide a glimmer of hope that once the pandemic ends, we can all go for exotic summer vacations. Speaking of the design, both new novelties aren’t much different from the previous Pioneer collection timepieces, with one notable exception—they now sport Streamliner-style hands, which include blocks in Globolight, the exceptional luminous material. The 42.8mm Pioneer Centre Seconds Mega Cool draws its power from the HMC 200 movement and comes with a variety of straps and a steel bracelet. Whereas, the tourbillon edition runs on HMC 804 and flaunts the tourbillon at six.

Louis Moinet: Nothing Is Too Extravagant

Over the years, Louis Moinet have perfected the art of storytelling by using their exquisitely designed timepieces. With the help of their incredibly skilled clan of artists, top-notch craftsmanship, and forward-looking innovation, the Swiss watchmaker have produced watches that are the symbol of relentless pursuit of boundless imagination and technology. In 2021, Louis Moinet have continued to push the boundaries of the horological world and presented some of the most stunning and breath-taking watches that they have ever come out with.

The Eight Marvels Of The World is a line-up of timepieces inspired by the various wonders of the world—carefully selected by Jean-Marie Schaller, CEO and creative director of Louis Moinet, during his travels and personal research. Using a set of unique techniques and materials to portray the eight different structures on the dials, the brand have perfectly captured the artistic diversity and various cultures that led to the construction of these wonders in the first place. The highly ornamented one-of-the-kind watches depict Rome’s Colosseum, Istanbul’s Blue Mosque, Jordan Petra, the pyramid of Khufu, the Taj Mahal, The Great Wall of China, Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer and Peru’s Machu Picchu, respectively. Offered in 47mm rose gold cases—except for the Petra edition, which comes in white gold—all the timepieces have mesmerising embellishments, crafted by using traditional techniques like miniature painting, hand-engraving, bas-relief engraving, enamelling or gem-setting. Not only this, the watches also feature the tourbillon mechanism, seen at six o’clock. The Eight Marvels Of The World watches are presented in a specially crafted travel trunk made of natural elm burr and adorned with a silver-coloured Fleur de Lys and will be sold as a set.

While the Eight Marvels Of The World timepieces depict mankind’s greatest terrestrial achievements, the Moon Race line-up chronicles the beginnings of our endless voyage into the extra-terrestrial sea of unknown. The four watches of the collection pay tribute to four key episodes in humankind’s quest towards conquering the moon. The first is the successful lunar landing of the un-crewed Russian spacecraft Luna 9 in 1966. The second is the landing of the first man on the Moon in 1969. The third watch depicts the rescue operation of the Apollo 13 in 1973. And the fourth features the journey of Russia’s spacecraft Luna 24, which found the evidence of water on the Moon in 1979. To build these stunning timepieces, Louis Moinet have used some of the most unique materials, including natural stones, lunar meteorite, and the authentic fragments of four spacecraft that were a part of the space missions mentioned above. Each 47mm edition features a tourbillon and is housed in a rose gold case, attached with a blue alligator strap. Just like the Eight Marvels Of The World timepieces, the Moon Race watches come as a one-of-a-kind box set in a special natural elm burr wooden box.