Recent editions of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) have shown us that Piaget is able to hold its own across the entire range of watchmaking segments. The brand is regularly nominated in diverse categories, from Men’s to Artisanal Craft, demonstrating its strength as a jeweller and watchmaker in equal measure. Two years ago, Piaget won the highest prize of Aiguille d’Or for its exceptional achievements in ultra-thin watchmaking, the Altiplano Ultimate Concept representing the pinnacle of micromechanical engineering at that period of time.
This year, the brand’s GPHG finalist, the Piaget Extravagant Touch, makes a decisive departure from the realm of minimalism and shines a light on the brand’s prowess in expressive, high-jewellery creations. A slim white-gold watch with an elliptical dial and an asymmetric case set with diamonds and garnished with a spray of fanned feathers, the Extravagant Touch is a symphony of nature’s most alluring colours and textures.
The iridescent dial, with intermingled flecks of green and blue, is of black opal, considered the most desirable of opal variants because of the brilliance of its colours when compared to its paler cousins. The green and blue tones of the dial are complemented by marquise-cut green emeralds and blue sapphires, set around the periphery of the bezel and fading in colour intensity until they blend seamlessly into the white diamonds set along the bracelet.
Of course, in a category named Jewellery, the quality of the stones is of the utmost importance. While this is difficult to discern unless the watch is in your hand, Piaget’s stellar reputation in this regard provides profound assurance for the amateur gemologists among us.
The feathers are mounted on diamond-set clips, and can be removed from the watch to be worn as earrings, a system developed by Piaget for those who want a watch that is transformational in every way. With this final flourish, the Piaget Extravagant Touch appeals not only to our eyes and our tactile senses, but also to the mind and the heart.
