Bringing experience to the table
Having worked in the watchmaking industry for over 20 years before starting his brand, Sylvain Pinaud’s experience is extensive as it is colourful, with his independent workshop simply the culmination of his creative and technical watchmaking journey so far.
His experience is evident in his watches, demonstrating mastery of craft and a sharp focus on carefully chosen details. The Origine is the second watch from Pinaud, following up on his Chronographe. It inherits several aesthetic cues, such as the semi-openworked dial, and industrial, yet contained style he has developed. What makes this watch especially remarkable is the innovative rearrangement of the movement to put the balance wheel at the front of the dial, evidence of his ability to turn the tables on convention. Pinaud mentions that bringing the wheel to the front of the movement was tricky, as it required him to rethink and redesign the gear trains which connected to the time telling functions.
According to Pinaud, the watch is named “Origine” not only because he drew inspiration from the early days of watchmaking, but it was inspired after spending some time with his father in his hometown – he wanted to remember his roots, where he came from, and “that everyone has an origin”. His method of design is also especially unusual, as his focus is on the design of the watch first, before working on the movement and figuring out how to bring his ideas to life.
The Origine won the Horological Revelation Prize in 2022 at the GPHG Awards, in recognition of his talent as an emerging independent watchmaker and his remarkable watch.
The case
The case is constructed from stainless steel, measuring 40mm in diameter. Polished to a mirror finish, the bezel has rounded edges, while the lugs extend from the midcase and curve gently downwards. The reverse of the case has “Sylvain Pinaud” and “Artisan Horloger” engraved. Both the dial and case are made by Kari Voutilainen’s Comblemine.
The dial side
A recurring circular motif can be found throughout the dial, within the refined appearance of the nestled outlines of the dials juxtaposed against the exposed, mechanical forms of the balance wheel and escapement. This contrast is further expanded on between the polished surfaces of the balance bridge and dials with the frosted surface of the baseplate, drawing the eye’s focus to the former. The shape of the bridges is reminiscent of 18th or 19th century French watchmaking, where some watches featured the escapement on the front, as well as the combination of straight lines and circles.
The dial is mostly asymmetrical, with the time-telling register on the right and a subsidiary seconds slightly overlapping it on the left. Both are slightly raised, with alternating textures on the main dial – a glossy white chapter ring on the outermost sections of both main and sub-dials. The main dial features a matte grey section that is divided by sectors to mark the hours. Pinaud deftly plays with perspectives, as the sub-seconds is the same size as the inner section of the main dial that also bears “Sylvain Pinaud – Handmade”, with more contrast created through the application of guilloché to the inner part of the sub-dial against the glossy white of the main dial’s inner section.
This configuration of the Origine is exactly the same as the original prototype, featuring a rose gold balance bridge, and hands, but a steel escapement. The rose gold balance bridge is the most difficult parts to finish, as the softness of the gold makes the material very delicate. The three-armed balance bridge is secured to the Breguet overcoil hairspring below with a central jewel, while black polished twin bridges and accompanying pins sit below. Each component visible in the lower half of the dial is finished to an extremely high standard, with black polish being used on the balance bridge. The opening, cut into the baseplate itself, is bevelled and polished. Anglage is used throughout, and is executed to a very high level, with several inner angles and polished countersinks.
The reverse
Turning the watch over reveals a three-quarter plate, with finger bridges and a small glimpse at the steel wheels, as well as cut outs that put the gear train and balance support on display. Given that the centrepiece of the movement has migrated to the dial, Pinaud gives us a more restrained and elegant reverse, with fewer things to focus on. In place of where the balance wheel would traditionally be, is the recessed plate that supports the balance wheel on the dial. In this space is engraved “Sylvain Pinaud” and the serial number.
Pinaud refers to the style of matte finishing he uses on his watches, marked by a softer appearance suited to the dial as well as movement sides, as “grainage”. This grainage provides a muted backdrop for the rest of the components to come together harmoniously, blending more naturally with the rounded shapes across the rest of the movement. This style of finishing is notoriously difficult to execute on a large surface because the size makes achieving a homogenous texture challenging.
A Collected Man is proud to be one of the few authorised retailers for Sylvain Pinaud. If you would like to be notified about available watches in the future, please contact our sales team.
