ArtyA will only create a new watch if they know it will be an outstanding piece. There is nothing repetitive, predictable or dull about their creations, which is pretty much the ultimate recipe for success in the books of rare and unique timepiece collectors. Their latest feat of excellence is the new Arabesque Tourbillon, a superb watch which introduces grade 5 titanium hand engraving into the watchmaking industry.
The idea of hand engraved titanium is counter intuitive, which is exactly what attracted Yvan Arpa, the avant-garde owner of ArtyA, to this project. While most watchmakers market their titanium timepieces as symbols of toughness and resistance, Arpa decided to approach the material as an artistic challenge. Inspired by the ornate riffle stocks of western movie heroes, he started to play with Arabesque patterns and came up with a superb design for his next creation.
Looking much like a decorative western belt buckle, the case is rectangular, which is another first for ArtyA. The engraving process took a master engraver over 100 hours of intense work, in a process that consumed countless chisels: every two minutes the tool would become too dull to use, and a new one had to take its place.
To complement the exquisite design, Yvan Arpa added 18kt gold inlays to the 100% titanium case. The dial is also richly decorated, and the flying tourbillon seems to have been born inside one of the Arabesque twirls. Its bridges feature multiple layers of carbon fiber, in keeping with the resistant-yet-lightweight theme.
Measuring 52.5 x 40 x 14.4 mm (2.06 x 1.57 x 0.56 in), the Arabesque Tourbillon is not meant for people with understated style. It is also water resistant to 3 atm and has a power reserve of 72 hours. It comes with a beautiful crocodile strap, and the rather prohibitive price of CHF 212,000 (about USD 217,000).
