At Audemars Piguet’s Social Club in Milan earlier this year, Aurélia Jouhanneau, Director of Communications, stated “2024 will focus on shapes and materials”. Well, have a glance through Audemars Piguet’s 2024 catalogue, and you’ll realize why that’s a modest oversimplification of the brand’s fearlessly experimental ambitions for the year.
Right from collaborating with long-time collector, John Mayer and Australian haute couture icon, Tamara Ralph over ultra-exclusive novelties to rolling out a fleet of pink gold Code 11.59 references and a brand-new case alloy for the Royal Oak Flying Tourbillon, here’s the highlight reel from Audemars Piguet’s 2024 collection.
Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon “Tamara Ralph”
The Royal Oak is, and always has been, watchmaking’s golden canvas of creativity. Right from Cactus Jack to John Mayer, and 1017 ALYX 9SM to Marvel’s Black Panther and Spider-Man, Le Brassus’ Royal Oak has a penchant for reinventing itself as an obelisk for the world’s most disruptively creative minds. For 2024, they turn to haute couture designer Tamara Ralph, materializing the intersection between her feminine flair and haute horology. Adding hallucinogenic depth to dimensions amidst a play of sparkly textures and bronze tones, Ralph believes this one-off Royal Oak to be objects d’art and vectors of emotion.
While the Royal Oak Concept was initially destined to celebrate the Royal Oak’s 30th anniversary back in 2002, it was first presented in January during Ralph’s SS24 runway show in Paris. As Audemars Piguet’s platform for technical experimentation, avant-garde design, and material innovation, its results are typically incarnated in 44-millimetre men’s models.
However, Ralph’s collaborative creation at 38.5 millimetres is distinctly designed for women. To achieve the case’s finish, Audemars Piguet employed the ancient Florentine technique of gold hammering using a diamond-tipped tool. The result is a brutalist sparkle that glistens but isn’t flashy. The dial, appearing as a deep well, is Ralph’s play of textures, volume, and tones, coming together in a layered arrangement of concentric rings, ascending in brown, bronze, pink, and yellow gold. Like a sun to a galaxy, the tourbillon cage is adorned with a diamond-set circle. All of this is cased in 18-carat pink gold housing the manual-wound, flying tourbillon calibre 2964, which offers a 72-hour power reserve. Limited to 102 pieces.
Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar “John Mayer” Limited Edition
Just over nine weeks ago, John Mayer – The music industry’s most Audemars Piguet-obsessed artist announced his long-anticipated collaboration with the brand – and at Watches & Wonders ’24, Mayer x Audemars Piguet’s new creative conduit finally came to life. In the form of a 41-millimetre, 18-carat white gold Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar, this “moonless sky” of a dial represents the vastness and nightly sparkle of celestial infinity. See that shimmer? That’s achieved by stamping the brass dial plate with an electroformed die until it results in a mirage of a sea of diamonds. Next, the dial is PVD-coated in blue, creating a regal hue mechanically enriched further with three perpetual calendar sub-dials. This novelty is powered by Audemars Piguet’s self-wound calibre 5134 which also offers an astronomical moonphase and a 40-hour power reserve. Limited to 200 pieces, this Royal Oak is one of the most talked-about timepieces of the year.
Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Openworked ‘Sand Gold’
Right since the early 1970s, the Royal Oak has been Audemars Piguet’s bread-and-butter model – consistently evolving with the contemporary with an immortalized Genta silhouette. Shape-shifting between forms, dimensions, and shades, for 2024, it arrives in 18-carat ‘Sand Gold’ and bare-bones.
The new gold alloy offers a delicate hue, somewhere between pink and white. However, it’s a melding of solid gold, copper and palladium, exuding a sand-gold galvanic hue.
I think this Royal Oak’s skeletal discipline simply adds more depth to this piece. The calibre 2972’s semi-symmetrical architecture is put on display, showing off its inner workings and rhodium-toned components. Upon close inspection, this openworked movement turns into a museum of intricacies and exquisite craftsmanship. Right from satin to circular and sunray brushing, and snailing to vertical and horizontal brushing. Of course, amidst this technical brilliance, a flying tourbillon at six o’clock is still front and centre, putting up a mechanical dance for the wearer. The calibre 2972 is developed in-house and runs automatic with a flying tourbillon beating at 21,600 vibrations per hour, delivering a 65-hour power reserve.
Seven New References of Code 11.59 Cast in Pink Gold
The Code 11.59 might be a young rookie alongside the mighty Royal Oak – but even at just five years old, it’s strutting quite a stride.
After previously taking to smaller, 38-millimetre dimensions, they’ve gone all out with 18-carat pink gold cases this year. The striking embossed dial guilloche is courtesy of Swiss craftsman Yann von Kaenel. In terms of hues, the collection is centred on “Bleu nuit” and green, which arrive in self-winding time-only as well as self-winding chronograph versions. However, only the “Bleu nuit” model comes in a 38-millimetre option with a pearly dark blue leather strap instead of the usual rubber-laced option of the 41s. There’s also a 41-millimetre black ceramic-cased chronograph and a 38-millimetre, turquoise/light blue time-only option.
Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon Extra-Thin ‘RD#3’
In 2022, the Royal Oak marked its fiftieth anniversary with a fleet of celebratory novelties including a 39-millimetre Jumbo flexing a flying tourbillon, dubbed the ‘RD#3’. Next year, it took to smaller, 37-millimetre dimensions, cast in steel with a divine purple Petite Tapisserie dial. Today, retaining the same form and hypnotic elegance of its flying tourbillon, it takes an 18-carat white gold form embellished with 32 baguette-cut diamonds on its bezel. As Audemars Piguet’s third Research & Development project, the smoked blue, Petite Tapisserie guilloche dial is achieved by PVD treatments. At the same time, its gradient effect is produced by spraying black varnish around its peripherals. The hour indexes are adorned by 12 baguette-cut diamonds and the titanium flying tourbillon cage rests over a rhodium-plated balance wheel. The mainplate and bridges of the calibre 2968 have their traditional Côtes de Genève decoration replaced by traits tires, delivering a 50-hour power reserve.
Royal Oak Offshore
As an ode to 2002’s Royal Oak Offshore Rubberclad, this Offshore marks the return of the rubber bezel, it still isn’t a diver (given its modest 100-metre water resistance rating). This two-tone Royal Oak boasts a 43-millimetre stainless steel case with a contrasting blue rubber-coated bezel, complemented by a smoked blue Méga Tapisserie dial. It’s a fuss-free Offshore ridden of all complications, sticking to its classic formula. The hour indexes and hands are dipped in a luminescent material for enhanced visibility. Powered by the calibre 4302, which is self-wound and boasts a 70-hour power reserve.
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