EVENT: Cartier launch Shape Your Time in Sydney
Felix ScholzLast week Team Time+Tide attended a Cartier event in Sydney. And what an event. We were whisked off to a secret Sydney location, greeted by uniformed Cartier staff at a venue that could have stood in for a Bond villain’s pad (Daniel Craig era, not Moore). If you squinted descending the stairs you could have sworn it was the Grand Budapest Hotel. As we explored the sandstone and cedar Cartier lair, we were swathed in light from the harbor and dazzled by (literally) million dollar views. There were several hundred-thousand dollar views of timepieces on display too, but we’ll get to that.
It was then we saw the watches. Key pieces from Cartier’s menswear collection were placed around the room, on tables echoing the roman numerals of the Caliber de Cartier. We were all drawn to the pink gold Caliber de Cartier diver (Andrew took his 47th wrist shot, following on from his SIHH collection), the Tortue XL Perpetual Calendar and the Tank MC Skeleton – all bold, refined and masculine watches for a brand more often associated with women’s jewellery and men’s wrist candy.
But that’s what we were in Sydney to celebrate – Cartier’s men’s watchmaking collection, which has gone from strength to strength in recent years. Cartier could easily rest on the laurels of the Tank, and the Santos, but while these models have an important place in their collections, they serve as a base canvas for Cartier to demonstrate their watchmaking prowess, and the house excels at masculine skeletonized dials, artistic dials and flying tourbillons.
We were also there to celebrate the launch of a short film – Shape Your Time, which celebrates Cartier’s watchmaking past and future.
[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNtZ3pPun3Y” width=”840″]
Time+Tide were guests of Cartier