By Dhananjay Pathak
The world of watches is vast and diverse, and while each one of us is always on the lookout for that perfect everyday watch, it is fun and refreshing to come across a watch that breaks the monotony and does not look like anything else out there. On that note let me introduce you to the Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda 1950 Marcello Lo Giudice watch, an imaginative timepiece which is a result of the collaboration between Parmigiani and Italian artist Marcello Lo Guidice.
Marcello Lo Guidice is an Italian contemporary artist who is considered as one of the most innovative artists on the new frontier of European Art Informal. Lo Guidice creates vibrant and energetic paintings by spreading and layering colorful pigments thickly on the canvas and the dial on the Parimigiani Fleurier Tonda 1950 Marcello Lo Giudice is truly reflective of his work, but on a smaller scale. The dial on this watch depicts a section of Marcello’s Eden Universe, Eden Ocean artwork and is produced by using lasers to engrave and build volume on the raw plate of the dial. Following this, the dial is painted using the required colors to reproduce the desired section of the art piece and I must say that the end result is truly mesmerizing. And while the dial is undoubtedly beautiful to look it does detract from the purpose of showing time accurately as the only other details that exist on the dial are the branding at 12 and the hour and the minute hands.
The case on this watch is made out of 18k rose gold and has a diameter of 39mm which should make it wear comfortably on varied wrist sizes. The golden color tone of the case really complements the different shades of blue on the dial and adds to the elegance of the watch. Water resistance is rated at a meager 30m, but is certainly suitable for a dressy watch like this. One of my favorite details on the case are the tear-drop style lugs which give the watch a distinctive appeal and have somewhat become a signature of the brands Tonda collection. Powering the watch is Parmigiani ’s self-winding caliber PF702, a micro-rotor based movement. It is just 2.6mm thick and operates at a frequency of 21600 bph providing a power reserve of around 48 hours. The movement is visible through the sapphire crystal exhibition case back and has been beautifully decorated using Côtes de Genève on the bridges, perlage on the base plate and guilloche on the micro-rotor.
The Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda 1950 Marcello Lo Giudice is a watch that is truly reflective of the fact that watchmaking is a form of art. It is definitely not a watch for the average watch enthusiast, but is rather targeted towards discernible collectors who want their watches to be artistically expressive and do more than just tell the time. The watch is limited to a production run of just 12 pieces and would come fitted with a hand-stitched ‘Abyss Blue’ alligator leather strap made by Hermès. The watch would retail at a price of $36000. For more info, visit Parmigiani Fleurier online.
