Gérald Genta
Encyclopedia
Charles Gérald Genta was a Swiss wristwatch designer and company of the same name. In addition to his own line of time pieces, Genta had contributed to the designs of Swiss luxury watch firms including IWC
, Universal Geneve
, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet
, among several others. Genta's work has been dubbed "the Fabergé
of watches" by Christie's
auctionhouse of New York, and as the "world's most complicated and pricey watches" by The Wall Street Journal
.
It was reported in August 2011 that Genta had died at the age of 80.
training in his native Switzerland, earning a Swiss federal diploma.
A short time later, Genta was recruited by Universal Genève SA, which at the time had been one of the most recognized manufactures in both the U.S. and Europe for its chronograph varietals. After the aforementioned company settled a patent dispute involving the micro-rotor caliber, Genta designed Universal's Polerouter Microtors in the 1950s, as well as the Golden and White Shadows during the mid-1960s. The Shadows contained a micro-rotor, unisonic and accutron movement, the latter two a result of the quartz crisis
starting in the late 1960s.
Genta's work with Universal would be a precursor to future collaborations with other brands in Switzerland and throughout Europe, including Omega's Constellation (1959); Patek Philippe's Golden Eclipse (1968). Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak (1970), IWC's Ingenieur (1976); Patek Philippe's Nautilus (1976); and Cartier's Pasha de Cartier (1997)
After starting his own brand in 1969, Genta would create the sonnerie
s, among them the Gérald Genta Octo Granda Sonnerie Tourbillion, which contained four gong
s and an emulated Westminster Quarters bell ring at each quarter and on the hour, "the same melody rung out by London's Big Ben", and priced at $810,200. In 1994, he designed the Grande Sonnerie Retro, the world's most complicated wristwatch, and priced at approximately $2 million. For private requests, Genta hand-designed the movements, dials and cases of his timepieces and employed limited or no external assistance, outsourcing or mechanization during the process; it was not unusual for a single watch to take up to 5 years to complete.
During the 1980s, Genta obtained special licensing with The Walt Disney Company
and distributed a limited edition of Disney character watches to the public; previously, they had been an unofficial private request by one of Genta's repeat customers. The dials consisted of illustrations of Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Scrooge and Goofy, with cases made of 18k gold
. Designed in Le Brassus
, Switzerland, the watches retailed between $3250-$3650 in 1988.
Gerald Genta's clients for both collaborative and brand name watches have included various professional athletes, business executives
, rock musicians, rappers, movie stars, politicians and world royalty, including Prince Rainier of Monacco, King Hassan II of Morroco, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain
, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia
and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother of England
.
After his eponymous company was acquired by Bulgari
in 1999, Genta resigned and created a new venture called Gerald Charles. As of 2010, Gerald Genta watches will now only exist under the Bulgari label. As Bulgari had been acquired by upscale French conglomerate Louis Vuitton
-Moet
-Hennessy
in 2011, all "Gerald Genta" brand watches would in effect be products of the LVMH
portfolio.
In 2011, several online watch blogs reported about the watch he recently designed for the Swedish watch brand Arlanch. Although only presented as a sketch, the watch is planned for production.
International Watch Company
International Watch Co, also known as IWC, is a high-end Swiss watch manufacturer located in Schaffhausen, Switzerland. IWC is an active member of the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH....
, Universal Geneve
Universal Geneve
Universal Genève SA is a Swiss luxury watch company, founded in 1894 as "Universal Watch".Since its beginnings, the company has produced complete watches with in-house movements, and throughout the 20th century, distributed many notable and important timepieces...
, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet
Audemars Piguet
Audemars Piguet is a manufacturer of prestige Swiss watches which compete with Patek Philippe, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Vacheron Constantin.-Foundation:...
, among several others. Genta's work has been dubbed "the Fabergé
Fabergé
Fabergé may refer to:*House of Fabergé, a Russian jewelry firm founded by Gustav Faberge in 1842*Fabergé workmaster, goldsmiths who produced jewelry for the House of Fabergé*Fabergé eggs, the most famous works of the House of Faberge...
of watches" by Christie's
Christie's
Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.- History :The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766, and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766...
auctionhouse of New York, and as the "world's most complicated and pricey watches" by The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
.
It was reported in August 2011 that Genta had died at the age of 80.
Biography
Genta was born in Geneva to an ethnically Swiss mother and father of Piedmontese (Northern Italian) descent. At the age of 20, Genta finished jewelry and goldsmithGoldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Since ancient times the techniques of a goldsmith have evolved very little in order to produce items of jewelry of quality standards. In modern times actual goldsmiths are rare...
training in his native Switzerland, earning a Swiss federal diploma.
A short time later, Genta was recruited by Universal Genève SA, which at the time had been one of the most recognized manufactures in both the U.S. and Europe for its chronograph varietals. After the aforementioned company settled a patent dispute involving the micro-rotor caliber, Genta designed Universal's Polerouter Microtors in the 1950s, as well as the Golden and White Shadows during the mid-1960s. The Shadows contained a micro-rotor, unisonic and accutron movement, the latter two a result of the quartz crisis
Quartz crisis
The Quartz Crisis, also known as the Quartz Revolution is a term used in the watchmaking industry to refer to the economic upheavals caused by the advent of quartz watches in the 1970s and early 1980s, which largely replaced mechanical watches...
starting in the late 1960s.
Genta's work with Universal would be a precursor to future collaborations with other brands in Switzerland and throughout Europe, including Omega's Constellation (1959); Patek Philippe's Golden Eclipse (1968). Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak (1970), IWC's Ingenieur (1976); Patek Philippe's Nautilus (1976); and Cartier's Pasha de Cartier (1997)
After starting his own brand in 1969, Genta would create the sonnerie
Sonnerie
Sonnerie is French for "making sound" or "ring". The term generally applies to bell towers or bells in mechanical clocks or wristwatches , but can equally be used, for example, for the sound produced by a telephone....
s, among them the Gérald Genta Octo Granda Sonnerie Tourbillion, which contained four gong
Gong
A gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet....
s and an emulated Westminster Quarters bell ring at each quarter and on the hour, "the same melody rung out by London's Big Ben", and priced at $810,200. In 1994, he designed the Grande Sonnerie Retro, the world's most complicated wristwatch, and priced at approximately $2 million. For private requests, Genta hand-designed the movements, dials and cases of his timepieces and employed limited or no external assistance, outsourcing or mechanization during the process; it was not unusual for a single watch to take up to 5 years to complete.
During the 1980s, Genta obtained special licensing with The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
and distributed a limited edition of Disney character watches to the public; previously, they had been an unofficial private request by one of Genta's repeat customers. The dials consisted of illustrations of Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Scrooge and Goofy, with cases made of 18k gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
. Designed in Le Brassus
Le Brassus
Le Brassus is a village in the Vallée de Joux in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. It is part of the municipality Le Chenit.-References:...
, Switzerland, the watches retailed between $3250-$3650 in 1988.
Gerald Genta's clients for both collaborative and brand name watches have included various professional athletes, business executives
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
, rock musicians, rappers, movie stars, politicians and world royalty, including Prince Rainier of Monacco, King Hassan II of Morroco, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain
Queen Sofía of Spain
Queen Sofía of Spain is the wife of King Juan Carlos I of Spain.-Early life and family:Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark was born in Psychiko, Athens, Greece on 2 November 1938, the eldest child of the King Paul of Greece and his wife, Queen Frederika , a former princess of Hanover...
, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
After his eponymous company was acquired by Bulgari
Bulgari
Bulgari is an Italian jeweler and luxury goods retailer which has been owned by the French firm LVMH since October 2011. The trademark is usually written "BVLGARI" in the classical Latin alphabet , and is derived from the surname of the company's Greek founder, Sotirio Voulgaris...
in 1999, Genta resigned and created a new venture called Gerald Charles. As of 2010, Gerald Genta watches will now only exist under the Bulgari label. As Bulgari had been acquired by upscale French conglomerate Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton Malletier – commonly referred to as Louis Vuitton , or shortened to LV – is a French fashion house founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label is well known for its LV monogram, which is featured on most products, ranging from luxury trunks and leather goods to ready-to-wear, shoes,...
-Moet
Moët et Chandon
Moët & Chandon , or Moët, is a French winery and co-owner of the luxury goods company Moët-Hennessy • Louis Vuitton. Moët et Chandon is one of the world's largest champagne producers and a prominent champagne house. The company holds a Royal Warrant to supply champagne to Elizabeth II...
-Hennessy
Hennessy
Jas Hennessy & Co., or more simply Hennessy, is a world-leading cognac house with headquarters in Cognac, France. Today, the company of Jas Hennessy & Co...
in 2011, all "Gerald Genta" brand watches would in effect be products of the LVMH
LVMH
LVMH Moët Hennessy • Louis Vuitton S.A., better known as LVMH, is a French multinational luxury goods conglomerate headquartered in Paris, Île-de-France, France. The company was formed after the 1987 merger of fashion house Louis Vuitton with Moët Hennessy, a company formed after the 1971 merger...
portfolio.
In 2011, several online watch blogs reported about the watch he recently designed for the Swedish watch brand Arlanch. Although only presented as a sketch, the watch is planned for production.