In 2016, Audemars Piguet unveiled two Frosted Gold Royal Oak ladies’ watches to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the collection. These two watches, in white and pink gold, represented the second time that the women’s Royal Oak had showcased the talents of a woman. The first time, you may remember, was in 1976, when Jacqueline Dimier created the women’s version of the Royal Oak. She retained the strong masculine lines of Gérald Genta’s original design, but brought out the feminine spirit of her creation with a more svelte silhouette. Forty years after Jacqueline Dimier, the brand welcomed Carolina Bucci.
Bucci, a native of Florence, is passionate about jewellery design. She continues the tradition of her family, which has produced generation after generation of goldsmiths since 1885, by updating a traditional technique that she now uses in her own designs. This “Florentine finish”, which involves hammering gold with a diamond-tipped tool, creates tiny indentations that catch the light. As a result of a collaboration between Audemars Piguet and Carolina Bucci, this technique has been applied to the case and bracelet of the Royal Oak 2017 models, earning them their label “Frosted Gold” (watch the video).
The new Royal Oak Frosted Gold recently unveiled by Audemars Piguet is the latest result of this collaborative venture. While yellow gold has undoubtedly come back into favour with the watch industry over the last season or two, this watch takes the material to its logical extreme. Yellow gold is Carolina Bucci’s favourite material, and this new 37 mm piece is rendered even more radiant through its Florentine finish, used here for the first time on this shade of gold. But that’s not the only way in which this timepiece harnesses the play of light: the Italian designer has chosen to replace the usual tapestry motif on the dial with a mirror. Smooth and meticulously polished in the Audemars Piguet workshops, the mirror dial contrasts with the hammered finish of the rest of the watch, reflecting the light and interacting with its environment. “The mirror interacts constantly with its environment, changing its appearance depending on the outfit you’re wearing, the decoration of the room you’re in, the lighting, the time of day and the weather,” Carolina Bucci points out.
The new Royal Oak Frosted Gold, with its choice of yellow gold, the mirror dial, and even the watch presentation box, which Carolina Bucci also designed, represents a strong reflection of the designer’s aesthetic. And that is probably why Audemars Piguet has chosen to give this 300-piece limited edition the name of Carolina Bucci.
The Royal Oak Frosted Gold Carolina Bucci is fitted with a self-winding automatic movement that displays the three time functions, plus a date in a window at 3 o’clock, and provides a 60-hour power reserve. The yellow gold case of the Frosted Gold is water resistant to 50 metres, with sapphire crystals front and back and a screw-down crown. The smooth expanse of the silver-coloured mirror dial is punctuated by yellow gold applied indices. The hands are also in yellow gold, coated with luminescent material. The yellow gold bracelet of the Frosted Gold is secured with an Audemars Piguet folding buckle.
The watch is priced at 53,900 Swiss francs.
