A Game Of Time

La Montre Hermès creative director, Philippe Delhotal, reveals how the concept of play has helped the brand find its unique spot among some serious Haute Horlogerie competition.

- Tan Wei Lin

La Montre Hermès, the French luxury house’s watchmaking arm, is having an exceptional year in getting the watch industry’s attention, having introduced some truly outstanding creations at the 2019 Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie. Of course, we had expected nothing less from a brand known for its originality and whimsical horological ideas.

Among other horological novelties are two standouts that caught everyone’s eye, albeit for obviously different reasons. First is a watch of modern style and sophistication, designed for the feminine wrist: the Galop d’Hermès has a slim strap and boasts a stirrup-shaped case, a completely new silhouette for the watchmaker that also clearly references the maison’s ties with the equestrian world.

Second, a moonphase watch that upends traditional concepts of the age-old complication that tracks the lunar cycle—and it does so with impressive wit and style, no less. The Arceau L’Heure de la Lune is unlike any other moonphase watch. Instead of indicating the lunar phase via an aperture on the dial, Hermès has chosen to place it front and centre. As its moving subdials, which tell the time, glide across stationary mother-of-pearl moon discs set into the dial, the waxing and waning of the moon are replicated across the face of the watch with whimsical realism.

We caught up with La Montre Hermès creative director, Philippe Delhotal, while he was in town for the maison’s Time, a Hermès Object exhibition in May. He shed light on the ideas behind these creations and how the brand has thrived on making play an essential element of its watches.