Yesterday, Drake unveiled the quilt artwork of his subsequent album, For All of the Canines, which was charmingly drawn by his 5-year-old son Adonis. One thing should be within the air, as a result of on the exact same day, an analogous reveal additionally occurred within the watch world. The revered unbiased watchmaker Ludovic Ballouard introduced the latest version of his legendary Upside Down watch—dubbed the Ludovic Ballouard et Fils Upside Down “Collection Gaga”—which contains a dial printed with the crayoned scribblings of his 4-year-old son.
Maybe you’re already dismissing this as a publicity stunt: an opulent 108,00 CHF (roughly $123,000) heirloom-grade timepiece that’ll be eagerly snatched up by elite patrons…and it’s been doodled on by a small little one? However there’s a deeply transferring backstory to this uncommon watch that ought to stir collectors.
If you happen to’re not acquainted with Ludovic Ballouard, he’s an knowledgeable watchmaker with an unconventional background. Born in Brittany, he confirmed an early aptitude for all issues mechanical and attended watchmaking faculty upon the suggestion of a trainer. Nevertheless, upon commencement, he was reluctant to depart his quiet area of France, the place there have been few jobs within the horological sphere. For six years he kicked round his outdated digs, working as a technician on airplane management panels.
Lastly, Ballouard left for Geneva, the place he minimize his tooth working first for Franck Muller, after which for none apart from François-Paul Journe, who’s extensively considered one of many biggest residing watchmakers. Journe thought-about Ballouard so proficient that he was the one worker apart from himself who was allowed to work on the model’s Sonnerie Souveraine, its most complex timepiece.
When Ballouard struck out on his personal, he dreamt of a watch impressed by a Zen Buddhist perception that human lives are out of steadiness, or “the wrong way up,” as we’re so usually obsessing over the previous or consumed with ideas of the longer term. To that finish, he designed the Upside Down watch with a superb complication: Every particular person hour index would stay the wrong way up till its appointed time had come, at which level it might revolve 180 levels and face upward, joined by a small, coloured dot as an extra visible indicator. Flip the watch over, and also you’re greeted by an unimaginable visible feast of a motion the likes of which hasn’t been seen earlier than on this planet of haute horlogerie.
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