The standout from the new collection, for me, has to be the seemingly Blue Man Group-indebted edition of the Royal Oak. As mechanical watches have gotten more comfortable leaning towards the fashion end of the spectrum, brands like Audemars Piguet have embraced color and unexpected materials wholeheartedly. The ceramic Royal Oaks were already, arguably, the coolest pieces coming out of Le Brassus (where AP is located) when they were made in less-exciting shades like black and white. Now, the watch comes in blue—BLUE! The commitment to the bit is what’s really exciting here. This isn’t an accent, a pop of color, or a funky seconds hand—the bracelet, case, bezel, and face just blue-d itself. (Naturally, the numerals are made out of white gold.)
But Audemars Piguet didn’t put away its Magic Markers after it was done with that Royal Oak. Earlier this year, AP released what it’s calling the RD#3 (referring to the brand’s third Research & Development project: a flying tourbillon that got its hands on those new actually effective slimming drugs) with a classic navy dial. Now, the brand is releasing the same watch with a blessedly not-classic shade stolen from Grimace. Not to be left out of the party, the Royal Oak Concept line, where AP concocts more experimental versions of its classic model, is also adding a new watch in a rugged dark-green.
Diode SA – Denis Hayoun
