June 3rd, 2022
Just when everyone was starting to settle happily with the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding model thinking it couldn’t get any better or hotter, the legendary Swiss company hits back with a stunning new design! To celebrate the model’s 50th anniversary, AP joined hands with the famous jewellery designer Carolina Bucci to create a unique timepiece. The watch finely blends Bucci’s effortless elegance with AP’s grandeur to design a genderless Royal Oak.
In 1972, Audemars Piguet requested Gerald Genta to design a watch to save the brand’s bankruptcy status. The later quickly came out with a revolutionary watch design overnight, ‘The Royal Oak’. The Genta-designed timepiece changed the watch industry forever and also created a new wristwatch lineage. This innovation inspired other brands to include at least one ‘lavish sports’ watch in their catalogue.
Over the years, AP has released several notable collections. But the Royal Oak continues to be the brand’s most sought-after release. After years, the Swiss legend celebrates the golden anniversary of the significant watch with a hot new release.
Carolina Bucci, the famous jewellery designer, integrates sophisticated touches to the celebratory Royal Oak. The result is something beyond what AP could ever imagine. It’s a beautiful concoction of colours that appears black from afar but is iridescent when you look closer.
Italian jeweller Bucci is not a new inclusion into the AP family. She has already designed two watches and one jewellery collection for the brand. However, things didn’t just happen overnight. In 2016, AP CEO François-Henry Bennahmias challenged Bucci to redesign the Royal Oak 40th anniversary women's collection.
Over lunch, Bennahmias saw Bucci wearing a 1980s men’s Royal Oak timepiece. He asked her why she wasn’t wearing any from the women’s collection. The designer said that none of the women’s models worked for her. It was then that Bennahmias urged her to go ahead and create something that she would like to wear.
The partnership of the famous watchmaker and the jeweller resulted in the best designs. But like every good thing that comes with perseverance, this collaboration was not without problems too. For Bucci, her creative process starts with a fully finalised watch image in her head. On the other hand, the AP technicians work to bring the ultimate precision to every design.
A few examples of AP & Bucci’s successful partnership include:
Each new step proved successful, making the collaboration stronger than before.
The latest Limited Edition Royal Oak serves the perfect ‘Bucci’ dose with a 34mm case and black ceramic dial. The dial changes its colour depending on the light, but the movement reveals a multi-coloured rainbow design. Creating the iridescent dial pattern involves micro-structuring the top of the dial’s brass plate. There's a golden metallic treatment done on the back of the sapphire plate that further creates a mirror-like effect. The result is a gorgeous AP timepiece that deserves all the applause. It also proves that a simple change in the dial’s colour can revolutionise the entire look!
Bucci finds beauty in the simplest yet unexpected places, which she fantastically tries to portray in her creativity. She has played well with colours and prefers to use ‘Iridescent’ instead of ‘Rainbow’ for a more urban context.
The play of all-black and multiple colours creates a mystical illusion. However, the process is laborious, and AP rejected numerous dial prototypes before finally settling with this hot beauty. The watch has a universal and unisex appeal. And Bucci emphasises that the design of the AP timepiece is an extension of the whole womanhood.
FINAL REMARK
The Limited Edition Royal Oak in black ceramic and the iridescent dial perfectly represents the model’s 50th anniversary. Also, no one better than Carolina Bucci could have given it the surprising touch! It uses various masculine and sporty features while staying innovative through techniques and materials, giving it a fine contemporary feel. The colourful, multi-dimensional dial is the best way to bring together the past, present, and future!
The all-black Royal Oak version is already seeing a crashing demand in the secondary market, with the prices doubling! If in case, you get hold of one, selling AP watches will definitely fetch you a mind-boggling price. Available in only 300 pieces, the new Carolina Bucci Edition is a colourful masterpiece available in AP boutiques and houses.
Also Read: 5 of the Best Audemars Piguet Watches for Avid Watch Collectors
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