- The Louis Vuitton Escale à Asnières is the maison’s first ever pocket watch
- The captivating automation watch pays homage to the Louis Vuitton family home in Asnières and features intricate engraving and enamel work
- It’s powered by the calibre LFTAU14.01, a manually winding movement
Over the past few years, Louis Vuitton has signalled its intent to shed its ‘fashion watch’ connotations and become a key player in the world of high watchmaking. While Louis Vuitton’s dedicated watchmaking department as we know it today was founded in 2002—although its very first watch release was actually the lug-less Monterey designed by Gae Aulenti in 1988—a relatively recent series of moves have elevated the maison’s horological output to new heights.
Namely: Jean Arnault’s (director of watches at Louis Vuitton) repositioning of Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking division (see: discontinuing all quartz men’s watches and tastefully reimagining the Tambour and Escale references) and introduction of the Louis Vuitton Watch Prize designed to identify and support independent watchmakers, as well as an increased use of La Fabrique du Temps (the high-concept movement manufacture founded by Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini and acquired by LVMH in 2011).
Continuing this streak, Louis Vuitton displays its fine watchmaking prowess with the release of its first pocket watch. The Louis Vuitton Escale à Asnières dually pays homage to the legacy of the Louis Vuitton family home in Asnières—which now houses the maisons legendary trunkmaking workshop—while showcasing the métiers d’arts mastery of La Fabrique du Temps.
The Louis Vuitton Escale à Asnières takes form in a 50mm rose gold case, which houses the calibre LFTAU14.01, a manual winding mechanical movement with an on-demand minute repeater that nods to the Jacquemart minute repeaters the maison has created over the years. The movement also features an automata function, with seven captivating animations bringing the dial to life.
The dial of the Escale à Asnières showcases the métiers d’arts expertise of master enameller Anita Porchet and master engraver Dick Steenman. Porchet’s enamel work paints a bucolic scene, depicting the Louis Vuitton family home and trunk workshop in Asnières through a rich tapestry of colours which required well over a dozen firings in the kiln. In the foreground, Steenman has fashioned a yellow gold 19th century horse-drawn carriage packed with Louis Vuitton trunks. The in-built animations depict the horse’s hooves clopping as the carriage wheels turn. The miniature coachman comes to life, raising his arms to guide the horse as the pile of trunks pop open to reveal the miniature monogrammed flowers hiding within.
Posited above this scene at 12 o’clock is a rotating sun embedded with a LV Monogram Star cut diamond — which holds the accolade of being the smallest LV-cut stone crafted by the maison. The dial is complemented by a dazzling array of gem-set diamonds on the bezel and suspension ring. Flip it over and you’ll find the engraving work extends to the caseback, which features the same horse-and-carriage as the dial.
The Escale à Asnières is presented in a manner befitting of its impeccable craftsmanship; housed within a custom Louis Vuitton trunk crafted from exotic green leather. Inside, concealed draws store the timepiece’s accompanying accessories, including a rose gold pocket watch chain, travel pouch, magnifying loupe, certificate, and a book chronicling the creation of the timepiece.
Price: $POA
Model: Escale à Asnières
Case size: 50mm
Movement: LFTAU14.01 (manual winding)
Water resistance: 3ATM
Functions: hours, minutes, minute repeater, Jacquemart mechanism with seven animations
Power reserve: 100 hours
Words by Theo Rosen
