In 1995, Cartier launched its Cartier Prize for Tomorrow's Watchmaking Talents, and this year's winners have just been announced. Aymeric Peters (IATA, Namur, Belgium) received first prize in the Watchmaking category, while Arthur Choquet (Lycée Jean Jaurès, Rennes, France) earned top honors in the Technicians category.
Unsurprisingly, both winning projects revolve around the concept of slowing—or even concealing—the passage of time, an approach reminiscent of Hermès' Le Temps Suspendu and Hublot's MP-12 Key of Time. Ideas such as on-demand time display, serenity, and balance are central to both creations.
Aymeric Peters' project takes the form of a cylinder supported by two arches rising from a wooden base. The cylinder houses the movement and displays the hours and minutes only when requested. At rest, both hands return to a vertical position. Turning a key concealed within the wooden base instantly brings the hands back to the correct time.
The project's technical achievement lies in the physical connection between the base and the movement, positioned roughly six inches above it. In many ways, it recalls the mysterious movement concept long associated with Cartier—an aspect that clearly appealed to the jury—"but using the principles of a chronograph and split-seconds mechanism, which is extremely difficult to achieve," the young laureate explained on social media. A distant wristwatch equivalent would be the Maurice Lacroix Aikon Mercury, which likewise displayed neither the hours nor the minutes while at rest.
From Paris with Love
The second winning project stands out for placing a Cartier movement within an architectural composition inspired by the classic Haussmann buildings of Paris. The movement is integrated into a minimalist structure and positioned at its summit, evoking either a Parisian streetlamp or a Morris advertising column. Here, technical execution gives way to storytelling and visual imagination. The jury was no doubt captivated by the project's distinctly Parisian spirit, reflecting Cartier's origins.
An Unconventional Competition
The Cartier Prize stands apart from similar initiatives in three important ways.
First, it is by far the oldest. Its inaugural edition took place in 1995, well before comparable programs such as LVMH's, launched in 2024, or F.P. Journe's, introduced in 2015.
Second, it is built around a specific theme. For this 28th edition, participants were asked to respond to the brief: Changing the Balance: Reading and Understanding Time Differently. Rather than presenting a personal creation or school watch—as is often the case—they were challenged to design an object around a predefined concept within a remarkably short timeframe: just 80 hours spread over three months.
Finally, every project must be based on a movement supplied by Cartier, which for this edition was a clock caliber.
"This competition broadens our horizons because, for its duration, we step into the role of a business leader," explains Marta Mazier, winner of the 2024 Apprentices category and one of the six apprentices and technicians recognized by Cartier that year.
The competition gives participants first-hand experience of virtually every aspect of a future career in watchmaking. Working within tight deadlines, coordinating multiple crafts, translating ideas into technical drawings and measurements, managing unforeseen challenges, and adapting to the realities of artistic craftsmanship all become part of the process. Whether it is a color changing during firing, enamel cracking, an artisan being unavailable or overbooked, or machining proving more demanding than expected, each obstacle is an opportunity to learn.
Challenges like these are unlikely to deter next year's participants. In 2027, for its 29th edition, the Cartier Prize for Tomorrow's Talents will expand to include jewelry as well.
