Vacheron Constantin Creates Six Watches Using Rare Artistic Crafts

Vacheron Constantin has turned the watch dial into a miniature canvas for six crafts rarely associated with horology. Métiers d’Art Tribute to the Animal Kingdom, created through the maison’s One of Not Many Crafts Programme, comprises six concept watches developed with external artisans.

The six pieces are Feathersnake, using featherwork by Julien Vermeulen; Glassoctopus, a glass sculpture by Simone Crestani; Oraygami, micro-origami by Anya Midori; Tigerbroidery, gold embroidery by Laura Baverstock; Papercroc, paper sculpture by Marianne Guély; and Woodenwings, wood marquetry by Anna Le Corno. Each is inspired by an animal.

The technical constraint is shared across the series. Each watch has a 42mm case, with no more than 4mm between the dial surface and sapphire crystal. The artisans therefore had to redesign techniques normally practised on a much larger scale. The featherwork serpent, for example, rises only 3mm above the dial and uses more than 200 feather fragments from seven Lophophore feathers, while the glass octopus rises 3.5mm.

The watches use Vacheron Constantin’s automatic Calibre 2460 G4, which displays the hours, minutes, day and date through four apertures around the dial, leaving the central surface available for the artistic compositions. The cases are in 18K white gold or 18K 5N pink gold, depending on the piece.

The series was presented as part of Homo Faber 2026 in Venice. For collectors, its interest lies less in conventional complications than in seeing how six external disciplines were adapted to the physical limits of a functioning mechanical watch.