The design of many Swiss watches has given them iconic status thanks to their exceptional and timeless aesthetic qualities. Some models even go beyond the sphere of watchmaking as such to become authentic design icons.

Gateways between the world of watchmaking and the arts are many and varied. Watch designers are naturally sensitive to artistic currents and draw great inspiration from them in their own creations. Sometimes artists and craftsmen themselves even work on the dial of a watch.

The materials traditionally used in watchmaking are steel and brass for the movement, steel and precious metals for the cases. But creators sometimes prove so ingenious that they incorporate surprising and unusual materials.

Some watches and in particular diver’s, pilot’s and motor racing driver’s watches have highly specific features whose initial purpose was linked to the function of the watch but which, over time, have become true signifiers enabling the timepiece to be recognised.

The role of a horological object designer is to style and implement the entire exterior of the timepiece (case, dial, hands, bracelet, movement components) in compliance with detailed specifications. In this way, he develops the concept previously set out in sketches, diagrams, coloured drawings and computer-assisted design (CAD). He goes on to make a three-dimensional prototype which is generally functional and ready for industrialisation.