The interview: Nicholas Rudaz, CEO of Franck Muller, on the making of New Novelties 2024
By Bryle B. Suralta
Thinking about the Aeternitas Mega, one can’t help but appreciate this masterclass in Franck Muller’s technical prowess. It’s only fitting that the most complicated watch in the world (built with a whopping 36 complications and 1,483 components) is made by the master of complications themselves. This piece encapsulates the brand’s commitment to horological innovation. It’s a philosophy that has defined its iconic collections since the introduction of the Cintrée Curve in 1987.
The Maison manages to find new ways to surprise watchmakers and collectors alike, whether it’s experimenting with futuristic silhouettes, opting for more flashy diamond-set builds or reconfiguring the classics with Art Deco elements. Nobody, of course, knows this better than Franck Muller CEO Nicholas Rudaz. In this interview, he talks us through its new novelties fresh off the World Presentation of Haute Horlogerie 2024 – and how the Maison manages to transcend fads and trends.
Boulevard: The Cintrée Curvex’s shape remains one of Franck Muller’s most identifiable silhouettes. For its latest reiterations, there’s the Cintrée Curvex Nuance and the Double Retrograde complications. How do these pieces stack up against its predecessors and the portfolio?
Nicholas Rudaz: The beauty and the exception is that it’s curved in one direction. But then it’s also curved in that direction. Effectively, it’s only here on one part of the glass that’s actually flat. When you work with a Curvex watch, you’ll see that everything is much more complicated. Making the case is much more complicated because you’ll need a thicker piece of gold or steel or titanium. The glass is curved, as well.
It’s more sensitive and fragile. You have to be more careful. The same goes for the dial. The dial is also curved in all the directions, as well. So when you work on the dial, it’s super complicated to have the curves inside the dial.
In the new collection that we presented at the World Presentation of Haute Horlogerie 2024 in Geneva, we’ve got the nuances, which means different colours. What we’ve done in this collection is to come out with nice new colours, ones that are much more contemporary and funky.
Blvd: Joining Cintrée Curvex Nuance is two more Cintrée Curvex variations in the Double Retrograde Hour and Retrograde Hour Day & Night, yes? Can you tells us more about these expressions?
Rudaz: Franck Muller has two favorite complications. The first the tourbillon, because Franck was the first to put the tourbillon in the front of a wristwatch. Before, it was always at the back of a wristwatch. It was only at the front of a pocket watch. Working with a pocket watch is always much easier to do. Franck was the first to do the double-axe tourbillon. He was the first to do the triple-axe tourbillon.
The second complication he loves is the Retrograde. Retrograde means that [the hands] always comes back. It comes back at six o’clock. So here (pointing to the Retrograde piece), right now, it’s 9:30, coming up to 10 o’clock.
In the original Retrograde movement, the day and night that we had would give you the impression that the office hours go by quicker than the social hours at night. This one is just easier to read.
Blvd: You’ve alluded to the Grand Central Tourbillon Skeleton. We can see that its design characteristics and tourbillion have been refreshed, as well. What particular features do you like the most?
Rudaz: No one does such a complication on the market. Basically, we had come out with the Grand Central tourbillon with a regular dial. Here, we are presenting the skeletal version of the Grand Central tourbillon. It’s the first time that such a Grand Central tourbillon is placed inside a Curvex watch. Again, the complication of doing such a thing is very, very complicated.
Moving from the dial version to the skeleton version, we didn’t just remove the dial. We totally redesigned the movement to make it much more aesthetic inside when you look through it. The idea was to bring the tourbillon as close as possible to the glass to make it stand out because that is the beauty of such a complication. With the two hands moving on a ball… it’s a ball-bearing system, as they call it.
Blvd: The Vanguard Lady Slim, on the other hand, is the kind of piece for collectors into “contemporary vintages.” What were some of the challenges of transitioning into a smaller frame? What was it about the Côtes de Genève decoration that makes this watch such a coveted piece? Again, how do you see this fairing in the Vanguard line?
Rudaz: First of all, and you’ll be happy to hear this: the inspiration for such a collection was vintage cars. That’s why you have the Speedometer at six o’clock. The Côtes de Genève is the decoration you see in the middle. If I move it around a little bit, I can sometimes see it better than others. This is a decoration that you find in a lot of watches from Geneva, but at the back.
The idea was to put that at the forefront of the design. Basically, this is an in-house model and it’s a slim case. It’s the first time that we actually put it in such a slim case, with such a beautiful large opening at the back. It gives you a lot of visibility in the decorated movement inside.
Of course, beautiful diamonds, beautiful new colours. Very much inspired by your favorite automobile. That’s another specialty of Franck Muller. It’s the fact that we do a lot of diamond-set watches. Why? Because the co-founder of Franck Muller, Vartan Sirmakes, who is actually the owner today, did the diamond setting for the Richemont Group or Gérald Genta back in the day. That’s how he met Franck. That’s how geniuses come together.
Blvd: So how do the latest trends in watchmaking influence your creative direction for such pieces, or even for the commissions you do? How do the watches in New Novelties continue to innovate its aesthetics, movements or configuration in the face of evolving tastes?
Rudaz: At Franck Muller, we were always concentrated on designing beautiful, aesthetically pleasing pieces, but also pushing the boundaries of the complications, be it for men or for ladies. Effectively, this year is no different to all the other years. We continue pushing the boundaries. Sometimes we’ll put a bit more colour than usual, more determined colours, depending on what the trend is during that year.
The person who has got all the wealth he can have, he always wants something unique. Some of them have very creative ideas, as well. And we like that challenge. We’re always up for that, as well. For example, when you work on the colours and the materials on such a watch, you’re working on different materials, but you’re always looking for the same colour. So, it can be a lengthy process in finding the right match between the different materials.
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