When a watch collector says he’s going to take one of his watches out for a spin, it just means he’s going out with that watch. Unless the watch in question is the Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Kaleidoscope Prestige, in which case it means that he is going to retrieve the watch out from its storage area – presumably a high-security safe embedded into the wall – and play with the mechanism.
One look at this breath-taking masterpiece is all it takes to realise that it is no ordinary watch. Beautifully decorated, it features a delicate fluted bezel and wisps of hand-engraving on the blackened gold dial emulating tall grass being blown askew by the wind. More importantly, the centrepiece carved out of rose gold into the shape of a rosette demonstrates the immense handcraftsmanship mastered at the Fleurier manufacture. This is also the part that gives the watch the name Kaleidoscope.
The rosette is openworked and hand-bevelled in a series of artisanal operations and required 80 hours of handcrafting. Through the openworking, a lower disc made from mother-of-pearl marquetry can be seen. Once the repeater is activated, this disc begins to rotate, interacting with the rosette, which is fixed to produce a dazzling optical effect not unlike that of a kaleidoscope. Thus when the repeater is chiming, not only would the wearer be thrilled by the sound of hammers striking gongs, he would also be mesmerised by the spiralling visual effects on the dial.
Entirely decorated with Côtes de Genève, the movement Calibre PF358 can be seen through the sapphire case back. This is also where the wearer can admire its striking mechanism. In particular, the gongs in this movement are cathedral gongs, which encircle the movement twice for greater acoustic quality: clearer chimes with finer resonance at the end. In addition, the case had been forged with the intention to produce the best acoustics, and so the sound waves oscillate at optimal frequencies inside the case.
Specifications
Dimensions: 45mm Functions: Hours, minutes, minute repeater with entertainment kaleidascope Power reserve: 40 hours Movement Manual-winding Calibre PF358 with minute repeater using cathedral gongs Material: 45mm in rose gold Water Resistance: 10 meters Strap: Black Hermès alligator leather with rose gold ardillon buckle
This article was first published in World of Watches.
In the hours and days following the UK referendum, in which 51.9% of voters elected to exit the European Union, much of the country looked on in shock. The campaign had been a bitter and visceral one, driven by inciting rhetoric around British immigration, the economy and the bureaucratic elite, but many inside Britain and abroad did not expect the leave vote to prevail.
As the world grappled with the results, the markets reacted on a scale not seen since the financial crisis. The pound plunged to the lowest since 1985, Asian stocks tumbled and just days later news came out that Standard & Poor’s had stripped Britain of its triple-A credit rating. The vote has set the nation up for bitter divorce talks ahead, and, since there is no precedent for a country leaving the 28-member-state EU trade block, uncertainty reigns over how exactly the UK will negotiate its new position within the political and economic landscape.
South Quay Plaza
This uncertainty has already affected the property market, particularly in London where some buyers have been pulling out of purchases, concerned about the city’s future. The UK Treasury warned before the vote that residential property prices would be as much as 18% lower if the country voted to leave. Howard Archer, chief European and UK economist at IHS Economics said housing market activity and prices were at “very serious risk of an extended, marked downturn following the UK’s decision to leave” the European Union. He predicts home prices could fall 5% in the second half of 2016 and a further 5% in 2017.
“The vote in favor of Brexit will generate a period of renewed uncertainty in the prime London residential market”, said Liam Bailey, global head of research at Knight Frank in London. “Some demand, especially from investors, will be delayed and in some cases redirected”.
South Quay Plaza Resident’s Floor Terrace
Brexit presents renewed uncertainty following a string of events that have already dampened London’s property market. From 2009 to 2014, London repeatedly made headlines for record-breaking sales of super prime mansions to wealthy buyers from Russia, the Middle East and Asia, many of them in the city’s central neighborhoods, the so-called ‘golden postcodes’ that include Belgravia, Knightsbridge, Kensington, Mayfair and Holland Park. However, since 2014, the market has slowed.
Some of the headwinds have come in the form of taxes. A new stamp duty rate, introduced in December 2014, charges 10% on properties worth over GBP 925,000 ($1.3 million) and 12% on those over GBP 1.5 million ($2.5 million). As of April this year, buyers of second homes and buy-to-let properties face another tax; a 3% stamp duty surcharge intended to level the field between investors and first-time buyers.
The effect of the new stamp duty rates was already being felt in the market, with far fewer transactions recorded in the $2 million plus range. Then, the Brexit campaign gave buyers and sellers further pause. “Buyers and sellers postponed decisions because of the prospect of entering unchartered economic and political territory,” says Tom Bill, Head of London Residential Research at Knight Frank. According Knight Frank data, demand remained subdued in May 2016 even for properties where asking prices had fallen by 10% or more.
South Quay Plaza Corner View
In a city that draws significant investment from international markets, local political upheavals are only part of the puzzle. Over the past year, major foreign investors in British property have been hit with their own setbacks: low oil prices in the Middle East, currency problems in Russia, a recession in Brazil and stock market turmoil in China, all of which have contributed to few high-end transactions. In 2014, Mideast investors made up 15% of prime central London buyers; in 2015 they made up 4%.
According to Yolande Barnes, Head of World Research at Savills, the Brexit campaign became a convenient excuse for a slowdown in the market that was already occurring. Savills figures show prices in prime central London dropped 6% in 2015, and deal volumes shrank have as much as 40%. “Brexit has been a very good excuse for people not to do anything in a market where people wouldn’t have done anything anyway”, Barnes says.
Nevertheless, the unexpected referendum outcome has added another, greater hurdle to a market that was still adjusting to stamp duties and global geopolitical factors. “The prime London property market would benefit from something that appears unlikely in the near-term: an uneventful six months”, says Knight Frank’s Tom Bill.
For some foreign investors, however, the current turmoil represents an opportunity. Buyers will get increased value in purchasing London properties as a result of a depreciating sterling, says Peter Wetherell, a Mayfair-based broker. “For overseas buyers, this big and dramatic drop in the value of sterling will effectively offset the Stamp Duty and tax adjustments and it will make prime London property a lucrative investment for overseas investors bold enough to take a punt despite the market uncertainty”.
View from One Tower Bridge — Master Bedroom
For many who believe in London’s long-term resilience, the current market disruptions do not change the overall attractiveness of the city, particularly as a haven for wealth preservation. Research from Knight Frank shows that over the last decade the city has drawn more than twice the number of High Net Worth Individuals from emerging markets (114,000) than the US and Australia combined (42,000 and 22,000 respectively). Investors are drawn by the city’s safety, good schools, green environment and central time zone, factors unlikely to change as a result of the Brexit vote.
The city is also actively investing in the future. A wider look at the real estate market also reveals that while demand for Prime Central London property has fallen in recent years, there has been an uptick in interest around greater London, where regeneration schemes and renewed connectivity and infrastructure projects are shifting the landscape of luxury living.
“As the golden postcodes of London became less affordable after the financial crisis, buyers have increasingly looked for better value further afield”, Tom Bill says. Though they are looking for better value they still want “best-in-class specifications and facilities”, and this means there is a growing focus on the quality of schemes rather than a desire to be in a specific area.
Developers have tapped into this demand, and it is raising the overall level of quality of new-build developments, which increasingly incorporate amenity packages, services, commercial and cultural components. While such experiments in urbanism and place making are common in cities like Miami, Hong Kong or Singapore, they are a relatively new phenomenon in London.
Southbank, one of the first areas to be revitalized, was not previously on the map for wealthy investors, but has experienced a faster rate of growth compared to other prime neighborhoods and serves as an example of how new markets can mature, says Tom Bill.
One Tower Bridge Exterior
In addition to The Shard (the tallest building in Western Europe), the area is the site of More London, master planned by Foster + Partners, and One Tower Bridge, a project from Berkeley Homes that combines luxury residences with shops, restaurants, pedestrian walkways and a lively riverfront park. In addition to its cultural offerings, The Ivy, a popular London brasserie recently announced plans to open a ground floor location at One Tower Bridge, and The London Theatre will soon occupy the development’s 900-seat sunken theater. The scheme itself incorporates significant space to outdoor living, also a novelty for London. “What is really special about this project is the amount of dynamic terrace and roof space, along with outdoor kitchens, hot tubs and gazebos”, says Murray Levinson, a partner at Squire & Partners who designed the project.
From the top of the Tower Penthouse, which comes complete with a roof terrace and hot tub, you can see the across the Thames to the city of London, the Tower Bridge, Tower of London and beyond. The lower-rise buildings, positioned facing the river, feature sliding glass doors that open onto wide terraces with views of City Hall and Tower Bridge. The views have been a strong selling point for the project, which is currently 90% sold. The quality of construction (interiors feature handcrafted joinery, polished marble worktops, Miele appliances and home automation systems), has also been a draw, as has the amenities package: 24-hour concierge service from Harrods Estates, a gym, spa and indoor pool are included. Roughly 23 units remain, including select penthouses. These are priced around $3,900 per square foot.
The mixed-use concept is also proliferating in greater London with schemes such as Nine Elms slated to include 20,000 new homes, and further west, White City, which is the site of a $10 billion overhaul that aims to transform the area from a stark, largely commercial landscape into a lively neighborhood with 5,000 new homes, shops and an office hub for media related companies. As part of the revival, London developer Stanhope is converting the former BBC headquarters into luxury residences.
To the east, tall towers are also multiplying in a city that was once defined by a more uniform, low-scale urbanism. At Canary Wharf, Herzog & de Meuron has designed a new tower nicknamed the Rolling Pin because of its tall cylindrical shape, and Foster + Partners have designed South Quay Plaza, the tallest residential project currently under construction in the EU.
One Tower Bridge Triplex Terrace View
Historically a busy port, and more recently the site of a burgeoning financial district, Canary Wharf is also becoming an increasingly coveted place to live. Expectations for future growth are bolstered by the arrival of the new Crossrail Line, scheduled to run in 2018, which will significantly cut travel times to central London. Today the area still feels largely corporate, but developers intend to blend residential and commercial programs with increased connectivity as the community matures.
“Canary Wharf is becoming more mixed-use and will grow to a population of 200,000,” says Harry Lewis, Managing Director of Berkeley Homes who is developing South Quay Plaza. “Rental yields are higher here, and the arrival of the Crossrail will be a game-changer.”
South Quay Plaza is situated on the waterfront directly opposite the CBD and though many of the adjacent buildings are built right to the edge of the shoreline, Grant Brooker, Head of Studio at Foster + Partners wanted to approach the site differently. “It’s important to let daylight through”, he says, explaining that by skewing the cube-shaped towers, which have a relatively small footprint (over 64% of the site will not be developed), he was able to create many more exposures. “The building doesn’t have a rear side”, he says. “Every unit has fantastic frontage”.
Brooker’s team also uses their extensive experience designing buildings internationally to create a comprehensive amenities program, which features a health club, spa and 20-meter pool, and a residents’ club lounge that spans the entire 56th floor and includes a bar, screening room and a large terrace. “The type of amenity that is required for a building to really work was missing in earlier developments in London”, Brooker says.
Scheduled for occupation starting in 2020, South Quay Plaza will include 888 units across the 36-storey and 68-storey towers ranging from studios to three-bedroom residences and penthouses. So far Berkeley Homes has released 350 units with prices starting from $990,000. To date, half of these units have sold, and demand from Asia has been strong: 50% of the project’s international buyers hail from China.
Adam Challis, Head of Residential Research at Jones Lang LaSalle says regeneration schemes such as Canary Wharf are particularly popular with Asian buyers because they understand the long-term investment potential. “They understand it because they have seen it happen in their own countries”, he says. Challis has also noted an overall shift in buyer attitude in recent years, wherein investors are taking the long view, looking carefully at programs, schemes and neighborhoods and approaching the decision as an investment in London as a whole.
Time will tell how Britain manages to negotiate its exit from the European Union, and how London fairs as a result of the changes. Much will depend on Brexit’s lasting implications for British businesses, particularly those in the country’s enormous financial sector. Before the referendum, London’s population was projected to grow by 100,000 people a year for the next decade and housing supply was lagging. For those who believe in the city’s future and continued potential for growth, now might be an opportune time to take the plunge.
This article was first published in Palace Magazine.
Walk on the right street in New York, and one will likely be greeted (or jumped, possibly) by the city’s idiosyncratic strain of street art and graffiti; works that run the gamut of emotions, from pure exuberant expressions of happiness and euphoria, to grim, deeper surrealist social commentary, from quick tags to elaborate Wildstyles — a populist art form that constantly responds to the life around you, whilst literally being around you. A city alive, constantly in flux.
One thing that remains constant though (with an unstoppably persistent output) is the work of oneJERKFACE. An NYC native, the Queens-born 34-year-old, has been consistently putting out his own strange brand of surrealist, cubist, low-brow culture, nostalgia-inducing, happy cartoon subversions since his teens. Homer Simpson, Finn and Jake, Super Mario, Tom and Jerry, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, amongst more examples — when one sees them appearing in the same frame (in signature “geometric-goop style”), you know you’re in the presence of a JERKFACE piece. Much like the Saturday morning cartoons, the pieces are JERKFACE’s paeans to the joy and happiness the shows have given him, and now he’s making sure people feel the same way too.
Pointed, opinionated and intent on marching to his own beat, Art Republik sits down with JERKFACE to see what keeps the man behind the work driven and ticking.
Homer Bobbin (detailed view)
First things first, how did the name come about and when did you decide to become JERKFACE?
Around 2001 the artist Neck Face was getting up a lot around the Gramercy area of Manhattan. I gave my ex-girlfriend the nickname and in exchange she started calling me JERKFACE.
Do you consider what you’re making art, design, mash-ups, pop provocations, or…
I think my work can fall under quite a few names depending on who you ask and I’d rather leave it up others to define it. Because of the attention to composition, flow, and colour placement of each piece, I believe it cannot be so simply defined as design, mash-ups or pop provocations. There is much more at work.
What makes a good wall piece?
The biggest part of deciding who or what to paint for a wall has to do with the size and shape of the wall and whatever particular character I’m currently excited about.
How do you approach a work and decide on which characters to mash-up?
It’s become very popular lately. Being someone who got in before the rush, I have to continue to surprise people with the combinations. There always has to be a connection for me with the characters. That’s the basis. If I don’t have this connection, I won’t enjoy the creative process. Once I’ve decided on a subject, I rely a lot on intuition and revision to carry me through.
Duck Soup (detailed view)
Why cartoon characters?
Cartoon characters play into everyone’s childhood. They are an aspect of innocence and joy that jog the memory of a simpler time. Adulthood for most of us, can be very heavy at times. Remembering my own youth through these compositions invokes joy and nostalgia, and it has the same effect on the people who appreciate my work.
Do you feel your wall paintings are optimistic, or at least the ideology behind your work? Do you feel it’s important to be optimistic?
It’s pure and potent optimism. There is no negativity in my work. The way I see it, there’s enough negativity in life. I’d rather provide happiness and healing, then more negativity.
You have mentioned your frenetic work rate, a trait you seem to have been naturally imbued with since young (“a hyper ass kid”) to now, dedicating, by your count, spending “90% of your day doing something art related”. Given your manic output, do you find something therapeutic about your creative process?
Yes it can be very therapeutic. Being human, there are all kinds of factors that play into how therapeutic it can be. It can depend on my current mood, how much sleep I got, deadlines, so many things. Regardless, I still work.
How do you see yourself now, compared to when you first started out?
Not much different. I enjoy what I do just as much now as I ever have. I always want my work to express how much fun I’m having. I truly love to paint. I’ve made a point not to let any of the benefits of success distract me from this love.
Any influencers, inside and even outside of the art sphere?
There are many artists I look up to, present and past. To look up to another artist, I have to take into account, their body of work, reputation and integrity.
Seeing your walls, from (Keith) Haring-esque freestyle, spontaneous, pop-cubist, surreal, subverted and sometimes weird dreamscapes, is there — like Haring himself who’s activism and deep concerns about issues like life/death, sexuality, and war was prevalent in his work — a guiding principle to your process?
No. I have very strong opinions about most social and political aspects of life. However, as my main intention is to create a gateway to youth, I try to stay away from anything that will too directly depict any personal opinions I have about current issues. I always want my work to be open to interpretation.
Bears don’t care (detailed view)
You’ve regularly spoken about your eschewing of the scene and starting one of your own instead and marching to your own beat. Do you feel like an outsider?
I’m an outsider by choice. In the art world, everyone is competing to fill a few slots. Just below the surface, jealousy and insecurity run rampant. Besides, you can’t stand a part, if you’re standing in it.
You are a born-and-bred NYC native (with a self-professed tenuous relationship to its bureaucratic administration) — do you think growing up in NYC influenced the way you approached your practice in general? What do you feel about the energy of the place then and now?
I think growing up in NYC influenced my approach to life in general. Growing up in NYC is very different than moving here. Your brain is wired from youth to be more skeptical, more aggressive, and cleverer, out of necessity. It was a darker city, it wasn’t hard to find a New Yorker on a New York street, but hipsters bring good food.
How do you feel about your work in a street, more open environment to varied and diverse audiences, as opposed to the confines of a gallery?
Being in the street, it’s unpredictable. Who will come along, what will happen. It’s an adventure. Interacting with the neighbourhood is my favourite part of any creative process.
What are your thoughts on live painting, in front of a live audience? Are there any parallels to a rap freestyle, with regards to spontaneity, and a kind of test of a street artist’s true mettle?
Live painting gets me off. I don’t know why. Creating and observing are two of humanity’s most mysterious and greatest traits. The combination is very satisfying.
You’re currently preparing for your October solo show “Saturday Morning” with Over The Influence gallery in Hong Kong (at time of print). What’s in the works for you, that we can expect in the near future? And, is that a reference to the universal broadcast hours when the most kick-ass cartoons come out on TV?
“Saturday Morning” is in reference to that time slot. I didn’t focus particularly on the cartoons you would see on a Saturday morning, but more the ideal of a time allotted for such an experience. As for future works… what’s better than the known? The unknown… See you in the future.
The first hat to cross the Atlantic ocean – on Charles Lindbergh’s head, as seen above – could be yours at auction this week. Early aviation heroes such as Lindbergh, Alberto Santos-Dumont and Amelia Earhart continue to strike a chord, even with contemporary audiences. It is no surprise then that the auction of the aforementioned long-lost hat owned by Lindbergh is on course to set auction records this week.
The flying hat aviation pioneer Lindbergh lost while doing loop-the-loops over Paris after becoming the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic is to be auctioned in the French capital. This isn’t merely a piece of clothing owned by Lindbergh though because it has tremendous provenance.
The leather and sheepskin cap which Lindbergh managed to lose twice in the space of a week after making history in May 1927, could make 80,000 euros ($88,000), according to Hotel Drouot auction house.
The “Lone Eagle” first lost the hat when he was mobbed after his plane, the Spirit of St Louis, landed at the Bourget airstrip near the French capital on May 21, 1927.
A mechanic handed the hat in to the US embassy that evening only for Lindbergh to lose it again seven days later when he was given special permission to perform aerobatic feats over the city in a borrowed French fighter.
The next morning a woman near Bourget found it in her vegetable patch.
The hat, which will go under the hammer on November 16, has been kept by the same family since. It wasn’t actually identified as Lindbergh’s until 1969.
Lindbergh returned to the US a hero, but six year later was hit by tragedy when his baby son, Charles Junior, was kidnapped from the family home. The body of the 20-month-old was later found nearby.
The iconic British motorcycle brand Triumph delivered the all-new Triumph Street Scrambler November 10 at the EICMA (Esposizione Internazionale Ciclo e Motociclo) show in Milan. Triumph, a firm known for its fetching blends of retro looks and modern-day tech, teased the stylish scrambler ahead of the show but the official unveil lived up to the hype.
The new Triumph Street Scrambler keeps the classic lines of the 1060s Triumph scramblers of old but throws a water-cooled 900cc engine into the mix plus ABS and traction control for good measure. According to Triumph, the new bike will be perfect for the city and a little light off-roading.
Everything on the bike has been added or removed to ensure it really can head off the beaten track at a moment’s notice and when it goes on sale in January it will do so alongside a huge list of customization options and personalization accessories. For instance, customers will be able to specify the bike with a single or double seat, with off-road foot pegs and with an optional luggage rack for those that really want to go exploring beyond the tarmac.
This year, Ulysse Nardin marks its 170th year of founding, and the 20th anniversary of the Marine collection. To coincide with these milestones, the manufacture released the technically impressive Marine Grand Deck, which came complete with a miniature boom on its dial to mark the minutes. At close to half a million dollars, however, the Marine Grand Deck was out of reach for most buyers, even if they could secure one of its 18 limited pieces. Fortunately, Ulysse Nardin also released a more accessible option that doesn’t scrimp on technical content, while also observing the design codes that pay tribute to the brand’s history of producing marine chronometers – the Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronograph Annual Calendar.
Simplicity is the common thread running through the tapestry of this watch, which combines two perennially useful complications – the chronograph and the annual calendar. For a start, the information is all displayed in a clutter-free way with just three sub-dials and a date aperture, by combining the small seconds counter and month display. Functionally, the annual calendar only requires an adjustment once a year at the end of February, which simplifies the ownership experience. Should the timepiece stop running and a date adjustment be required, however, the annual calendar’s display can also be corrected easily via the crown in both directions. What makes this even more impressive is the components needed for the complication – just a dozen, three more than its sibling Calibre UN-118’s simple calendar.
For its design, the Marine Chronograph Annual Calendar leans towards classic styling, although performance-oriented details are still present. The timepiece’s blue, white, and metallic grey tones recall the sea while imparting an understated elegance, complemented by Roman numeral indexes and classic hand styles. Two notable dashes of red are present though, and highlight the watch’s pedigree – Ulysse Nardin’s year of founding is printed at six o’clock in the color, which the hand indicating the month is also rendered in as a nod to the annual calendar complication underneath. To allow elapsed time to be measured accurately, the chapter ring on the flange is sub-divided down to the quarters of a second – the smallest interval the 28,800bph movement, which has a silicon balance spring and escapement, can measure.
Power Reserve: 52 hours
Movement: Self-winding Ulysse Nardin UN-153 movement with chronograph and annual calendar Material: Steel Water Resistant: 100 meters Strap: Navy blue alligator with steel deployant buckle
This article was first published in World of Watches.
