A fashion designer and a master perfumer go into a watch factory. The punch line of this scenario is the concept watch “Égérie – The Pleats of Time”. This extraordinary bijou was created in collaboration between Yiqing Yin and Dominique Ropion for the traditional house of Vacheron Constantin.
A fashion trend disappears as quickly as it arrived. A perfume fragrance evaporates in the blink of an eye. They are the victims of time. But also its witnesses. True masters of their trade are able to undermine the gears of transience and give the world creations that last. Like a dress that not only floats above the fleeting whims of the public, but also inspires new generations. Or a scent that brings us back vividly to a moment years later before it evaporates in our memory. Time cannot be stopped. But sometimes, with a great deal of skill, it can be captured.
For such a task, the Swiss watch manufacturer Vacheron Constantin turned to two exceptional talents, haute couture designer Yiqing Yin and master perfumer Dominique Ropion. Their expertise has merged in the concept watch “Égérie – The Pleats of Time”. The first model of its kind in the world, the timepiece randomly releases a fragrance when the wrist is moved. Yiqing Yin gives the innovative concept an exorbitant shape. The Chinese woman now calls Paris her home, was one of the youngest ever members of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in 2015 and has been associated with Vacheron Constantin for four years. As part of the “One of Not Many” campaign, the haute couturière represents a model series for women called “Égérie” – and is now complementing this with her own creation. “I wanted to incorporate my intuitive creativity into the strictly regulated world of haute horlogerie and create a watch that sets time free and transforms it into an object of emotion,” says Yin. In doing so, the fashion designer personally entered uncharted creative territory, but quickly found her way around it: “As an haute couture designer, I was confronted with the unprecedented technical regulations of watchmaking and was looking for a point of contact with my artistic process, which is rooted in a constantly moving visual narrative in dialog with flexible forms.” Thus, a closer look reveals the similarities in the craft of haute horlogerie and haute couture – especially that of Yiqing Yin, which is characterized by flowing forms and harmonious textures: “The simplification of the dial brings out the essence, a vibration embodied by the pleating pattern on both the watch and the dress – creating a space for breathing and suppleness that holds enormous potential.”
When time begins to smell
To ensure that this eye-catcher can also be inhaled, a luminary in her field was invited. Dominique Ropion was already involved in the development of Yiqing Yin’s “Minima Naturalia” fragrance dress, which was on display in the French pavilion at the 2021 World Expo in Dubai. But even for the master perfumer, who is familiar with all scents, the new task was not an everyday one: “Translating time into fragrance notes is a challenge that I found both exciting and complex. I have been working with Yiqing since 2010 and am familiar with her attention to detail, which is similar to my own. Together, we smelled and tested dozens of raw materials to capture time in a fragrance.” The finished aroma – a chameleon-like bouquet with notes of galbanum, lavender, ylang-ylang, oranges and lemons, among others – was filled into nanocapsules. These are located in the individual components of the bracelet and spray the perfume depending on the friction with the wrist. This means that “Égérie – The Pleats of Time” is not just an hour and minute device that shoos us from one appointment to the next. Rather, it is a time machine that unexpectedly beguiles our senses in everyday life and perhaps allows us to reflect on past moments. Like the citrus trees during our walks on our last vacation. Or that bouquet of strawflowers on the kitchen table last winter.
“We must be prepared to lose ourselves for a while in order to discover what we don’t yet know.” – Yiqing Yin
Parallel to the watch, Yiqing Yin created a corresponding haute couture dress, thus aesthetically rounding off the overall work. The dress made of satin and silk chiffon continues the wave-like play of the “Égérie – The Pleats of Time”. The artist used new, environmentally friendly processes for the iridescent dyeing. The project gave Yin the opportunity to expand her artistic and craft horizons: “Experimentation has always been a constant in my creative approach, a guiding principle. In my work, I try to provoke encounters between different worlds and create collisions between different forms of expression,” reveals the designer. In recent years, her paths have often taken her into terrain outside the fashion world. Together with sculptor Bastien Carré, Yiqing Yin combined shades and materials to create a dress. She designed the stage set for a ballet version of “Tristian and Isolde”. And designed the costume for lead actress Marion Cotillard in the award-winning drama “Annette”. Yin’s work not only dresses mannequins or flows down the catwalk, but also shines in museums of ethnology and art galleries around the world. “I like to work with people from dimensions I am not familiar with and I see design – especially in haute couture – as a laboratory where I challenge established techniques. I see knowledge and know-how as tools that can be misdirected.”
And if you get lost, you end up in places you’ve never been before. Fortunately, also in places that you didn’t even know you wanted to find. “Égérie – The Pleats of Time” is one such new discovery whose concept opens up exciting possibilities. Will its fragrant function soon be as much a part of a watch as the date display or a tourbillon? Time, what else, will tell. For Yiqing Yin, the experiment has paid off: “I am convinced that the key to creativity lies in taking risks and being prepared to step out of your comfort zone in order to enable constant innovation. We must be willing to lose ourselves for a while in order to discover what we don’t yet know.” A wise and reassuring piece of advice for anyone who fears they are running out of time on the path to self-knowledge.
“Égérie Moon Phase”
The second watch in the collection may not have a perfume, but it is no less fragrant. Yiqing Yin’s artistic vision continues in the “Égérie Moon Phase” and the designer also attached great importance to “feminine, fleeting shades like the delicate embodiment of daydreams” in the coloration. In addition to the rose gold and diamonds, it is the mother-of-pearl dial in particular that magically attracts the eye even when it is not looking for the time. The “Égérie Moon Phase” has three interchangeable bracelets and is limited to 100 pieces.
“Égérie Moon Phase”, approx. 43’000.-
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Photos: © Vacheron Constantin
